


Divinely Defiled

by Anonymous



Category: Mortal Kombat (Video Games), Mortal Kombat - All Media Types
Genre: But Not Really Because They All Bang, Earthrealm (Mortal Kombat), Elder God, F/M, How Did a Plot Get In Here?, I'm Going to Hell, Love Triangles, M/M, Netherrealm (Mortal Kombat), PWP, Poor Raiden, Porn With Plot, Rape/Non-con Elements, Say Whaaaat?, Scheming, Sibling Incest, haha - Freeform, he did nothing wrong, timeline's obscure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-08-17
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:42:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 81,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25177864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Shinnok knew about his sister's affections for the thunder god Raiden, but Cetrion didn't know about his.Shinnok/Cetrion/Raiden y'all.
Relationships: Cetrion/Raiden, Raiden/Shinnok (Mortal Kombat), Shinnok/Cetrion, Shinnok/Cetrion/Raiden
Comments: 28
Kudos: 98
Collections: Anonymous





	1. Part 1

It started as an itch, something right beneath the surface of the layers that formed him. It settled just out of reach until it evolved into an annoyance, something the Elder God did not have much tolerance for. Part of the annoyance was over the fact that Shinnok couldn't quite place where it began. He's harbored this off-hand feeling for so long he felt as if he came into existence with it.

It was odd though, how this undescribed sensation would grow to such an amount as for a deity like Shinnok to notice. Most of the time there was nothing to rouse his focus and his days, weeks, years, centuries would pass on in normality. When his daily routine was effected by this “pull” it was often during seemingly meaningless intervals; a short conversation here, a task completion there, and then there were the tributes. The tributes was where this subtle poke would rile.

During the tribute ceremony there were boundless offerings from the mortals of the realms. A majority of said items were worthless to an Elder God, but the amount of which was a totem of pride. A snide expression always worn by the one who received the most—sometimes it was Shinnok.

However it was the lesser gods and their tribute that proved of higher worth. These beings, these protectors of their assigned realms came obediently, though not all respectfully. There was reluctance in the eyes of some as they gave away precious heirlooms in return for favor, but they knew their place and their treasures stood a better chance at being cherished than that from the populace they watch over.

These ceremonies were annually, and as often as they were so too was that irk somewhere inside Shinnok. While currently he sat as the one with the most tribute his expression only showed vexation. His mind was away from the ceremony and it was the light touch of the one seated beside him that pulled him back.

"At ease, brother. Focus on the troubles of your heart another time." Cetrion's voice was calm, an anchor to his inner storm. He returned her touch.

"Apologies," he said. His eyes returned to the procession. Eternally repetitive.

"Your mind has been elsewhere as of late. This is unlike you, Shinnok." Cetrion inclined her head as she was presented with rare silk of which was spun from an extinct species. The god who gave it departed with it easily, his eyes awed by Cetrion's beauty.

"Is it?" Shinnok rolled his shoulders, pressing his back into the throne on which he sat. "I feel as if I have been this way since time began."

Cetrion's lips curled. She looked at him again. Her beauty and patience calmed the upset threatening to rise in him. It was a good thing, because it was just in time for Earthrealm's protector to offer his tribute.

Raiden was dressed in white and gold, a figure of power and nobility. Donned very much like the others. Except he came before the Elder Gods with nothing but a small stone.

"What is this you've brought us, Raiden?"

White eyes looked down. There was some sort of tenderness in them, even as they glew. The piece was small, held in the god's hand and pressed against his breast as if dear.

As he held it out, the shimmer was otherworldly. "I come to you today not to bring my rarest relics but to offer you my realm's most pure soul." Raiden set the stone down among the other tributes. It looked mundane in comparison, but there was something about the sheen that enticed the Elder Gods.

"He lived commendably, died heroically, and remains honored by his people. I grant him to you in honor of all he gave to my realm and to me. May he serve you in this place humbly and eternally." Raiden bowed as he moved away to stand back in rank with the others already presented.

While such a gift was righteous and noble, Shinnok felt no such feeling but disdain. Not for the offered soul but for the fact that a god such as Raiden believed he could come to the tributes and offer something so simple. What was worse was seeing the others beside Shinnok. All of which were awed and accepting, even his dearest sister.

It baffled him and aggravated that itch all the more. Because of that he just couldn’t keep his eyes off of Raiden. Even amongst the lesser gods there was competition for favor and this often fell in the form of tributes, but Earthrealm's protector didn't at all look to be hiding any sort of motive that would pit him against his fellows. No, even the other gods looked at him as if his tribute decision was folly. And perhaps it was, in a way.

But the soul was accepted and now serves in the chambers of Heaven; a tribute more often used than even all of the previous gifts. It set an irritation inside Shinnok, one that made him glare at his fellow Elder Gods and especially at the god from Earthrealm. Because of his constant watch Shinnok began to notice things, things not often seen if not watched for millennia.

There was favoritism. The Elder Gods' seats were so high they had to sit in neutrality, but Shinnok saw the subtle sway of his brethren toward certain realms; all because of worshipper numbers, consistent high quality tributes, individually requested visits, and so much more. This shift perturbed Shinnok and slowly set him against the others. Not only that but the mere sight of all that Raiden had began to stew inside him wrongly. The lesser god held position over the most sought after realm. It had a multitude of resources, a virile and devout populace, and energies that could very well swallow other realms. Yet Raiden didn't touch any of it, instead he was convicted and convinced that Earthrealm's most precious resource was the souls inhabiting it.

Elder Gods weren't materialistic—at least they shouldn't be—yet the waste was obvious to the point Shinnok showed indifference when various realms began to fall from the corruption of their protectors. The topic rose concerns around their thrones, but Shinnok refused to lay any pity down, silently blaming his brethren for the destruction. After all corruption spawned from jealousy and greed, and there were many gods pining for favor that none would publically give.

Even in this current grief the tributes carried on. The atrophy whittled away the quality of the presented gifts for the realms most effected and there were many heads bowed in shame because of so, but then there were those who felt no grief in realm or treasures.

Raiden and his plane remained unharmed.

His simplistic gifts continued as did the security of his realm. And it just didn't seem fair. All of this animosity and the likes of Earthrealm is spared?

It made Shinnok wonder what it would be like should that realm fall under assault as countless others already were. What then would they offer in tribute? What then would Raiden seek council for when he visited?

Shinnok could see it, he could feel it; Earthrealm fed Raiden and made him strong. Oh, to see him weakened. Oh, to see him fight.

It was a vision that tickled Shinnok in ways he's never felt. And that itch swirled along with it. This visage began to return over and over until the formation of a desire plagued him. Oh, how wretched, how disgusting a thought that was; to see a realm ravaged and its protector in utter dismay. But by reaction it would create something powerful, something divine.

The darkness inside him toiled away until Shinnok saw no relief from it. It moved him to fury, to discontent, especially as he sat there through each tribute and visit to find no render, no batter, not even so much of an antagonistic assault on Raiden or his territory.

It could be because no one could, and that right there just wasn't fair. Earthrealm was beautiful as were its people . . . and its protector. Yet there was none strong enough to reach out and take it, take him and rip him to pieces until he yielded, until he begged, until he moaned for release.

Oh what a wicked thing this itch has become. Yet Shinnok didn't find any reason to do away with it. Only to indulge.

In the not-so-recesses of his mind Shinnok began to stew upon damnable ideas, ones he was just a twitch away from committing. But then _it_ happened.

Earthrealm was attacked.

The assault didn't last long, yet Shinnok marveled at it nonetheless. It was an outside force. One driven away by the atrocities of its own home. The peoples needed to find a place to live and feed off of. So they chose the most appeasing realm.

Their grief over their loss spurred them into aggression and just as Raiden offered them sanctuary they attacked. Shinnok thought the loss of life would be greater, but the numbers were mediocre at best. Raiden and his brethren fought against this invasion and it was no more.

There was disappointment, obviously, but it had been exciting whilst the siege lasted. Shinnok paid attention to every detail and frowned at each mistake these would-be conquerors made. How flawed they were, how little their carnality became as the thunder god fell upon them and destroyed them.

The end result was expected and Shinnok still sat in disappointment. Though, the sight of the fight was glorious. Watching Raiden utilize every ounce of his power to lay down the final blow was, as mortals say, breathtaking. The power he exuded sent ripples throughout the terrestrial planes and every being made of higher matter shuddered at the feel.

For a lesser god, Raiden was powerful. And it was that power that became the marvel of the century. Never had Raiden been as favored as he was now by his people, and that favor just so happened to extend realms reaching even Heaven.

Shinnok noticed it during the ceremony where Raiden was honored with an amulet. Presented straight from Cetrion's hands herself. Raiden took the medallion and the honor humbly yet marveling green eyes remained upon him and wouldn't turn away.

No doubt it was the display of power that attracted Shinnok's sister. Just as he dazzled hope in the hearts across the realms so too did he within the Elder God. Shinnok's thoughts on the matter were . . . complicated.

On one hand there was something akin to an acid pooling inside Shinnok's chest. His sister's eyes never often removed from him and when they did those that kept her attention faded from existence. Raiden was a god, one of lesser status, but a god both immortal and eternal. On the other hand something cooled around Shinnok's gut. It was _that_ feeling, trying to pull him into action but said action was controversial and it involved both his sister and Earthrealm's protector god. And so he pushed it from his mind and left it alone for a millennium until it reared around with a heavier more convincing force.

Raiden was standing before them seeking council over a mundane subject. He was dressed in white again, overlain with soft fabrics of rich blue. These blues even wrapped around the expanse of his typical hat. As finely as his garb he stood attentive and spoke clearly, asking certain questions in order to receive enough answers to satisfy his reason for visiting.

He looked good. Shinnok could understand why his sister found it difficult to turn her eyes away from him. Yet even as she stared at him then Shinnok caught oddities in the tone of her voice whilst she spoke and offered her wisdom.

"You are all gracious for honoring me with an audience." Raiden bowed.

"You are always welcome in our courts. You know this, Raiden." This was the first time Cetrion offered a smile to any other but her brother. And it infuriated Shinnok.

Taking his sister's attention was personal, but so was seeing another give affection toward the one deity he obsessed over. In a way Shinnok's anger even moved against Cetrion. This conflict flared inside him until the agitation couldn't be ignored. He's had plenty of time to mull over some sort of solution to this rising issue, and more time to figure out if he was content to stand on that side.

"You best be off, Raiden." Shinnok met the god's eyes. He wondered if he could see the warnings in his illuminated irises, or the more concealed dark desires he contemplated. "It sounds like you have concluded a likely solution for these tectonic abnormalities you've been dealing with. While it is wise to religiously seek our council it is quite the opposite to leave your realm to itself. There is unrest about the planes. I would not tarry long."

Raiden’s expression morphed into confusion over Shinnok’s comment. It was obvious he lingered for an explanation for the ominous undertones, but Shinnok only offered him finality in the form of his unresponsive silence. Even the other Elder Gods remained tight-lipped, as they should be. It was not their place to decipher Shinnok’s words. Not that they could even if they so attempted.

Raiden left with an uneasiness and it was that which caused the other Elder Gods to look to Shinnok and scold him for his unnecessary cryptic demeanor. Shinnok paid them and their comments no mind because his was made up and with a glance toward his equally upset sister his resolution strengthened. His unyielding stance aggravated the others to the point they phased away from the throne room. Cetrion was intent to follow their lead, but before she completely dispersed herself Shinnok reached out and touched her. Their connection disrupted her departure, but it also made her look at him with eyes she didn’t quite hide the sadness in yet.

Shinnok hated the way she looked, but it didn’t stop him from leaning forward and kissing her. He wasn’t at all surprised when she pulled herself away a moment later.

“You spurn me, sister.” Shinnok knew. Even as she turned from him to hide herself, he knew why her affection for him currently waned. Yet he played with the tone of his voice to tug at his sister’s ever tender heart. “Have I done something to offend you?”

Cetrion turned. She stood a step closer, worry spreading across her. Always seeking a means to mend. “No. There is nothing you’ve done.”

Shinnok’s smile was sharp as he tilted his head. “Don’t lie to me. Was it because I sent the thunder god away? I’ve noticed your eyes on him lately.”

Cetrion’s gaze met his quietly. Shinnok sharpened his smile. Now she knew that he knew.

“Perhaps I should be the one whom is offended. He is far below us, and yet your heart yearns for him. What proletarian taste you’ve developed as of late, sister.” His words seemed to cut into Cetrion, each one beating her and her conscious. How he toyed with her thrilled him and enraged him at the same time. “However, I must confess that I’ve too come into fascination of one in similar status. Therefore I cannot stand before you in judgement.

Cetrion shifted. Her downcast eyes looked at her brother. They began to glow a little brighter.

“I would offer you my blessing to take him as a consort if you would grant me yours in pursuing my own desires.” Cetrion looked surprised by Shinnok’s response to this dilemma they’ve found themselves in. But underneath that surprise was a hesitance that Shinnok would have to find a way to break down.

Once more, Cetrion moved her eyes away. The shame was visible. “I have accepted that it cannot be.”

“We are Elder Gods, Cetrion. There are very few things that cannot be for us and fulfilling our desires is not among them.”

There was worry washing across Cetrion’s features. She was opening herself more to Shinnok about the upset inside her and the way she viewed it all. “He has never expressed affection to any being. When his eyes look upon me they do not look at me as I would wish them to.”

“That doesn’t matter.” Shinnok shook his head. This was why he often opposed his sister’s ideas. They saw things near opposite, always having different solutions to presented problems. “Regardless of whether he wants you or not, you can take him.” It was within Cetrion’s power as it was within Shinnok’s.

The idea made Cetrion’s eyes widen. Horror flashed across her beautiful features for a moment before she shook her head.

“No. What I want is not virtuous, therefore I must cast it aside.”

Moving closer, Shinnok let his essence brush against his sister’s. He needed to entice her, to pull her out of her purity so that they could get what they both wanted— _who_ they both wanted. He circled her, standing behind as he rose his hands and ran his fingers down her soft arms. Leaning ever closer he let her feel his desires, let the darkness of it mingle with her light to create the shadows of doubt he sought for, those that were dark enough where they could hide with their wants and the actions they sought to complete.

“And yet we want.” Shinnok pressed his lips close to Cetrion’s neck, teasing her with a touch just out of reach. She leaned for him, but he stood just far enough away to do nothing. “If even you can want, the epitome of virtue, then is it so wrong?”

Cetrion sighed against him. Shinnok could feel her desire strengthening in her energies. So he continued to poke and prod and tease until she followed him.

“If I were to commit this act I would shame my soul.” Cetrion stopped chasing. Shinnok felt her resistance even as his hands came down and caressed her sides. But he was patient. He knew it was only a matter of time and the right words and right touch that would make her bend to his will.

Shinnok finally placed a kiss against Cetrion’s jaw. “Your soul is already shamed by being consciously denied.” And then he pulled away. Cetrion twisted, following him even as he took a step back. When she stepped forward his smile returned. She now looked to him for what she should do. “Sister, you are dear to me, am I not to you?”

The struggles and shame that Cetrion was trying to hide began to fade away and in their place was a tenderness only a sister could grant her brother. Her smile for him was a lovely sight, and Shinnok intended to hold it. “You always are, Shinnok.”

This love of hers Shinnok would take and use in every pure and unholy way possible. He nodded. “Then let all the shame befall me. I will not sit idle while your soul rolls over in torment.” He spread his arms in invitation. Cetrion didn’t hesitate this time and she was pressed against him as soon as possible, clinging to him. “Dearest Cetrion, it is my duty to see to your happiness. All I ask is that you do not hinder me.” His ran the tips of his fingers down his sister’s face. She closed her eyes at his caress. “Just close your eyes until I tell you to open them.”

Cetrion yielded to Shinnok’s wishes. And with her devotion he left Heaven and moved into the realms below. He came to the realm where he garnered the highest count of followers: The Netherrealm.

Because of underlying laws set in place since his kind’s existence Shinnok was forced to take on physical garbs. So was the requirement for moving through the different planes. Enacting a limitation for an Elder God, though hindered to but a fleshly form Shinnok was still powerful and any other limitation was known well, well enough to push against these boundaries, each and every one until they verged on breaking.

Netherrealm was a wretched place, not even able to compete a shimmer against the likes of Edenia or even Earthrealm itself, yet a majority of its populace pledged loyalty in Shinnok’s worship. It wasn’t hard to multiply those numbers. They were pitiful souls content with the smallest spec of Shinnok’s knowledge of dark magic, just enough to defend themselves against their masters. Lucifer despised Shinnok for creating such heinous unrest, so his sparse visits were often met with heated glares and reluctant accommodations.

This is why Shinnok appeared far away from Lucifer’s abode. The terrain bubbled with heat and lava. The creatures around at the sight of him, those too low to understand his power. That was fine, he wasn’t seeking them out anyway.

Sending out his aura cloaked in cryptic vices so that only those who worshipped him would come, Shinnok stood patiently in wait for their response. Their usefulness would be sought upon this day. And they would complete this task.

“My lord!” The first to respond to his call was an oni already in servitude to Netherrealm’s ruler, however underappreciated work inevitably forced this spawn into Shinnok’s service, that and the promise of magic and power.

“Quan Chi.” Shinnok watched the pale oni bend himself in submission.

There was confusion in his black beady eyes, especially as he glanced around at the rough terrain they were settled in. “I don’t understand your reason for coming to this sector. Lord Lucifer would—”

“Not need to know of my arrival.” Shinnok stood tall even in his fleshly form. His face was stoic, and eyes demanding obedience. There would be getting nothing done if Lucifer was informed of his appearance. “I’ve summoned you for an audience.” Behind Quan Chi came the others, dressed in dark robes, assembling quietly and submissively. “All of you.”

As soon as the valley filled with his worshippers and their presence ensured no prying eye or listening ear would chance upon them, Shinnok pulled out a gourd from his robes and handed the piece to Quan Chi. Of course the oni would only look back at him with continued confusion.

“What would you have me do with this?”

“Fill it with this realm’s aether and then return it to me.” It was a simple command as it should be a simple mission. No questions followed and his followers departed to complete the task he asked of. When they returned Quan Chi offered up the gourd full of the realm’s life force.

With the gourd in hand, Shinnok’s followers watched as he transmutated the materials into something harder, something beautiful and shiny. A medallion. As soon as he was finished his worshippers fell down on their hands and knees, muttering praises and omens. There was no need to pay them much attention, only to place said medallion back into Quan Chi’s hands.

“Take this and present it before Raiden.”

Quan Chi blinked his eyes away from the beautiful piece in his hands and up toward his god. “Earthrealm’s protector? But how? We cannot leave, and if we did it would infuriate Lord Lucifer as well as Lord Raiden. The oni are not welcome in Earthrealm.”

Shinnok turned, and with a twist of his wrist he bent the realm until its borders slipped and a portal was created. “You will let me worry about the rest, just do as you are told.”

Shinnok pulled his oni followers into Earthrealm and instructed them in a cloaking spell. It was he who even hid their otherworldly essence so that no person or god would be able to detect them. With final instruction Shinnok then departed and reappeared in a field full of golden plants.

The winds passed over the plains he stood in, swaying the golden rods while lush green trees stood tall and proud along the borders with moist waters twisting their ways in and out of the fields. It reminded Shinnok of his sister, and the thought of her turned his eyes back to the reason he stepped into this realm. The skies above rolled with darkening clouds. When they rumbled excitement stirred that well-kept desire inside the Elder God.

The crackling roars made Shinnok clench his fists, his arms pulled back securely, formally, all in a means to restrain himself from premature action. Yet his soul remained unsettled, heightening that fact the moment lightning struck before him and formed a deity.

Bright eyes looked at him with surprise and humbleness moved the lesser god to bow. “Lord Shinnok. Your arrival is a surprise, but I welcome you nonetheless.”

Shinnok knew it wouldn’t take long before the lesser god noticed his presence within his realm. He was connected to this plane in that aspect, and anything coming in and going out he would know of. But not as to the intentions for the Elder God’s visit.

Honored with such a prestigious title, in turn Earthrealm honored Raiden with its energies, those flowing through him and heightening his might. Shinnok could feel it. Unhinged and unfortunately bridled. It sent shocks throughout his physical form, sending sensations through every muscle, every cell, every organ. It was a good thing for Raiden’s prolonged bow; it prevented the god from seeing the way Shinnok’s eyes looked at him, revealing all of the reasons as to why he was there.

“At ease, Raiden.”

The thunder god leaned back and looked at Shinnok expectantly. “Pardon my forwardness, but what manner brought you to Earthrealm?”

With the thunder god so close and those bright eyes of his looking at him, Shinnok found it unbearable to look away. So he didn’t. And Raiden never saw the deviousness in his eyes. “My reasons are my own. Though I do not see this a fitting greeting on your part, especially for that of an Elder God.”

Amusement rose up from the way Raiden’s eyes widened. By far Raiden of Earthrealm was one of the most honorable gods, always exuding humility and hospitality. Shinnok knew which strings to pluck with him, of course he did—he’s been watching him for millions of years. It was that embarrassing realization that stammered the god and immediately Shinnok was brought to Raiden’s temple.

The temple was high up in the mountains, tall and inspiring. Levels were still under construction and pillars and monuments being carved as well. Shinnok walked into the midst of this work. The peoples of Earthrealm were deep in their toiling. A dedicated lot.

When Raiden appeared with Shinnok in tow it was the specific worshippers that took it upon themselves to clear a path for their god and his superior. The wide eyes of the workers gawked in awe at the sight of them, at the sight of Shinnok. And once again it was Raiden’s worshippers who moved them into proper bows, at least until the deities entered the temple.

“Pardon the mess; the temple is still under renovation but it is the finest the people of this realm have constructed.” Raiden looked proud even as he looked along the corridors closed off, covered in sawdust and chiseled stone. He even took the time to politely bow to every worker they passed. Shinnok saw no need for such exhausting recognition, Raiden was their protector and god. Those titles were enough to demand capitulation and respect. Earning was useless, especially for that of a god.

But that’s why Raiden ended up catching both Shinnok and Cetrion’s eyes. He was unlike the others. As unnecessary as the things of which he did were, it was interesting to the sibling Elder Gods how he had so much power and influence and yet chose to live secluded from most of the populace, allowing them to make their own choices in government and culture. It was curious and all Shinnok wanted to do was to get inside the god’s mind, and much more.

The section of the temple not under construction was quite appeasing. Assumption proved right in that the interior was far more aesthetically pleasing than the exterior. Fine art hung around the room with golden laced wooden beams holding up the décor crowding the ceiling. Depictions of Raiden and his brethren covered above, seeping down below even into the walls, pictures reminiscent of moments of calamity—all of which were stomped out by Raiden.

Tribute in the form of crafted precious metals lined with gems sat atop curved counters and hung in corners. Carved images of Raiden and those closest to him stood out in stone and wood and around vases. There was obvious recognition for his duties, and yet Shinnok found himself sneering at a majority of it. Perhaps because it was just one room, one where there was no throne, no waiting servants, and no continual worship.

Lord Protector Raiden was denying himself so much.

A gust of wind brought in Raiden’s brethren. Fujin and the others took after their brother in offering their humility before the Elder God, each bowing in respect. Fujin’s smile was pleasant as he leaned back.

“What an honor it is for you to come visit us, Lord Shinnok. Though I feel it would have been worth more had you lingered a few decades until this temple sees its completion.” Even Fujin looked around a little disappointed, though Shinnok doubted it was over the progress of its construction and more related to Shinnok’s arrival.

“Let’s not dwell on the what-if’s of a perfect meeting, instead let us relish each other’s company.” Raiden was smiling, motioning everyone to take a seat at the low lying table. Food was called for but tarried longer due to preparation time. In the wait the gods conversed.

Shinnok could feel their spirits. The elemental deities were pleased with his visit. There was many a question in concerning the heavenly courts and even some curious brushes on the subject of the warring realms. Shinnok told them what they wanted to hear, and for now they were content.

“My lords!” Glowing eyes turned to see a group of monks. Dressed in beads and robes they bowed low until their noses touched the ground. “Forgive our intrusion but there are a number of pilgrims who have arrived to pay their respects, and they have brought tribute.”

Raiden nodded. “I grant you permission to accommodate them as well as accept their gifts in my stead. I am with a guest and cannot depart at the moment.”

“Oh come now, Raiden.” Shinnok watched the god turn from his followers and look at him, much in the same way he always did when seeking council in the heavenly courts. “They’ve traveled all this way in hopes to see you. It would bring shame upon them should their journey be in vain.”

Now all looked to Raiden for the final decision and just as Shinnok predicted, the council from him and expectant glares from his brethren pressured the thunder god to meet the pilgrims. Shinnok even accompanied Raiden as he stood before the large group, all dressed so well as the people of the world. They even bowed like they should have, praised Raiden like they should have, and offered him the only treasure they had—like they should have.

“For the shelter, for the food, and for the honor of you descending to see us, please allow us to place this in your hands, Lord Raiden.” The ragged pilgrim pulled out a beautiful medallion. There was a shine about it that allured the eyes present. Black gems littered it in mystical patterns while the shimmer of its bronze hue pulled every attention it could.

Raiden took it, just as he was supposed to.

“You honor me with all you have, now let me do the same.” Raiden inclined himself and moved to offer his plethora of servants and resources. “Take what you need, and stay as long as you want. Your presence is a welcome here.”

Just as the group began to be ushered away, the one who presented the medallion fought against the guiding hands, instead he came back before Raiden and fell to his knees, clasping his hands together. A look was shared between he and Shinnok before he turned his face back toward Raiden. “If you would but grant us one more honor, my lord!” He patted his chest. “If you would so will it that you wear our tribute so that we may know our protector has received all we have and honored it with his very form.”

What a sight it was; Raiden kneeling down and reaching out a hand in friendship. As if this man before him was one of Earthrealm’s peoples. It all made Shinnok smile.

Raiden looked down at the medallion in his hand and then at the haggard man. “Know that your journey here has inspired me as your words have humbled me, though I must decline this last request. I have many a tribute, many a soul wishing but the same. It is against my character to show any favor toward one. So I can accept your gift but cannot don it.”

Oh, the devastation on the man’s face, especially as his beady eyes turned toward Shinnok. Quan Chi looked as if he’d downright failed his master and his dismay could be felt even as he was finally ushered away with the others to their accommodations. But he hadn’t. He’d done exactly what he was supposed to.

As soon as they returned into the temple Raiden turned to one of his servants and made to hand the medallion away. “Put this in the treasury.”

“Is that where all your tributes end up?” Shinnok’s comment once again caught every eye present.

Raiden nodded. “Until we can find a place for them, yes.”

“This room is full of fine things, no doubt; precious metals, cut gems, rare fabrics and spices. It seems like a waste to put them all away like that.” Shinnok’s eyes looked down at the medallion, pleased to see Raiden had yet to release it. Instead, his continued words seemed to rouse a strength in the god’s curling fingers. “Knowing the destination for that, I see no wrong in fulfilling that people’s final wish. Sometimes your humility is more offense, Raiden.”

Even with reason previously given, Shinnok could see the struggle to decide on the next course of action. Raiden’s quiet was troubled, especially as he looked at the medallion. Of course Shinnok made sure to cast every spell he knew to ensure its bearer clung to it.

After the bout of silence, Raiden’s sigh signaled the end, and the medallion settled on his breast. There it remained as they returned to dine. It was long hours into the day, right when the sun settled when what Shinnok was waiting for finally happened.

On the third jug of wine, the one Raiden offered to pour. The grip in which he held it faltered and it slipped out of his hands and shattered on the floor Just as he refilled Shinnok’s cup. The shock of it startled every deity, but none more than Raiden himself.

“I . . . I . . . My apologies, I’m not sure what came over me.” Raiden riled in embarrassment, especially over the mess collected just at the train of Shinnok’s robes. Fujin and the others jumped up to help but Raiden motioned them away.

“Is something the matter?” Shinnok placed his goblet down and leaned closer. His essence brushed against Raiden’s. He could sense it. He could feel the mingling that shouldn’t be there.

“No,” Raiden dejected, leaning away as if he didn’t want the Elder God to know he wasn’t feeling well. “I simply miss-stepped.” The mess in his hands vibrated in his trembling grasp, and when he dropped the shards the second time no amount of demands could keep his brethren away.

Raiden had almost fell face first into the banquet table hadn’t it been for Shinnok’s quick movement. On his feet instantaneously, Shinnok’s arms took up the thunder god before he stumbled to the floor. As soon as he was secured in his embrace the other gods crowded, placing their hands on their brother in livid worry.

“It’s this.” Shinnok looked displeased, though not surprised as he pinched the medallion hung around Raiden’s neck.

“The tribute?” Fujin looked absolutely baffled as well as overly worried as Raiden’s eyes sparked odd shades. His body trembled even, making him and the others lean in closer as if trying to offer their strength. They’ve never seen Raiden like this. “How?”

With his power, Shinnok pulled a piece of aether out of the medallion if only to show the elemental gods. The sight of it brought understanding in their eyes.

“Netherrealm,” Fujin said. Shinnok doesn’t believe he’s seen the god this upset. “For what reason is any part of that realm here?”

“For what any other reason?” Shinnok dropped the medallion back onto Raiden’s chest, his hand then pressing down. He illuminated the very cycles of the god’s life force. Where a pure blueish white light should lie now entwined was something dark and crooked, upsetting the power flow as if Raiden stepped into the very Netherrealm itself. “This is an assault, meant to leave your protector weakened.” Shinnok watched with interest as Fujin and the gods of fire and earth and water reacted with their own power. Their rage was magnificent.

“These would-be attackers will find this realm plenty protected even without Raiden.” Fujin looked at the other three and the four of them nodded. The others dashed off first. It was Fujin who halted long enough to leave his ailing brother with a look of grief. But then he looked at Shinnok and said, “Can you help him?”

Shinnok stood straighter, never minding Raiden’s weight leaning against him. “Of course. Your realm’s jinsei will be sufficient.”

“And if it isn’t?” Fujin’s worry was reasonable. There were even things the jinsei couldn’t heal.

“Then I will be,” Shinnok assured. It was enough for Fujin to finally leave and join his brothers on the hunt. Their departure never thrilled the Elder God more.

The feel of Raiden’s hands grasping his robes and the heat of his body enticed Shinnok to hold him tighter. He couldn’t help but smile, even as Raiden looked up at him with flickering eyes. Raiden’s connection to Earthrealm’s had never been compromised. The power he received from its life force never once blocked. What was happening to him now was nothing severe, but to one who’s never been hindered it was certainly a harrowing experience.

Shinnok caught the movement Raiden made to take off the medallion. He reached out and stopped him. “Not yet,” was all he said as he then took the thunder god lower.

The jinsei was located at the lowest level of the temple. Coupled with heavy gates and trained guards. As soon as Shinnok appeared at the doorstep with a weakened Raiden the guards quickly rose to action, their spears at the ready.

Shinnok frowned. “You dare point your blades at an Elder God?” With a twitch of his finger Shinnok could disintegrate each and every one. Their loyalty was commendable, but Shinnok’s tolerance for them waned.

“Stop.” Shinnok turned to see Raiden push away from him. In a moment of control he snapped the chain around the medallion and then tossed the piece to the ground. His breathing labored and the flickering of his eyes settled for just long enough to look at his guardsmen. “Grant us entrance. Lord Shinnok will—” Once more he stumbled forward and in all of Shinnok’s compassion he saved the god from disgracefully falling to the dirty floor.

“Heed your god.” Shinnok glared at the guards who hesitated. They didn’t do so afterward.

As soon as the gates rolled aside the caretakers inside rushed out. They each took hold of their god, more than willing to assist him to the jinsei. But Shinnok refused to let go, instead pushing them away with a force of his own.

“Mortals cannot assist in this matter. Be gone. Out of these chambers, and do not enter unless I call for you.” Even the monks looked confused and more than worried for their wavering god, but they stepped away, standing beside the guards as the stones were rolled back in place and there was nothing else left save for the light of the jinsei.

What a beautiful awe-inspiring sight it was. Earthrealm’s very life seeping out in this place only. Shinnok actually took the moment to move away from Raiden to follow its light. Eyes closed and arms outstretched he basked in its warmth and energies pulsating from its core. The desire to slip inside it was near overwhelming, but something to indulge in another time.

With eyes opened, Shinnok turned to see Raiden had stumbled his way closer to the jinsei. He was right beside it now, only a little out of arm’s reach. That was when Shinnok came and took him back into his arms, twisting him away.

Lightning ran along Shinnok’s arms in a signal of Raiden’s resistance. While likely damaging, even what the bolts were now couldn’t harm a being such as him. And so Shinnok placed Raiden on the ground, pressing his hand against the god’s chest to hold down his struggling frame.

“I can’t see!” Raiden blinked, his eyes pale, devoid of light. “Lord Shinnok, I can’t—” Fingers pressed against Raiden’s mouth, sealing lips even as they quaked.

“Be silent,” Shinnok hummed. “What you’re experiencing is only temporary. It will pass.” Knelt down beside the god, Shinnok felt all inhabitations fading away. He had what he wanted, and he was going to get what he desired. Those fingers keeping Raiden silent then moved down his face, tracing the curve of his jaw just where his covering ran. “What is it like, hm? It must be terrifying. Having been unblemished for so long and to now experience this . . . oh, what fright you must be feeling.” Shinnok leaned down, inhaling the god’s essence, smile growing at the quakes in his energy fields. It was so very different than what he’d felt of him before that it was nothing but . . . arousing. “Don’t fret. Shinnok is here. Let me take care of you, and you be sure to take care of me.”

The light from the jinsei illuminated Raiden beautifully, especially when Shinnok’s hands slipped into his robes, pushing them aside to uncover his broad chest. The touch made the thunder god flinch. His blind eyes sought out the Elder God, and even in their darkness there was utter confusion scrawled in them. He tried to lean up on his elbows and push back, but Shinnok wouldn’t let him, instead he pushed him down again, his hands gripping tugging wrists and holding them there as Shinnok leaned down further and brushed his lips against the exposed skin of Raiden’s chest.

The eyes of the gods were everywhere, but the light of the jinsei was blinding. Its purity concealing the circumference around it. It was the perfect place for Shinnok to see his desire to the end. Even his fellow Elder Gods would never know.

As soon as Shinnok tugged on the bindings around Raiden’s waist the god shook one wrist free. Raiden grasped Shinnok’s wandering hand, sending surges of his bolts into the touch. It was miniscule in comparison to the might Shinnok hosted, but it had been enough to jerk Shinnok back.

An amusing chuckle tumbled out of Shinnok as he watched Raiden twist and try and crawl away. He watched him turn toward the jinsei, his source of healing. But Shinnok stood between it. If he wanted it, he’d have to come back toward him.

Raiden didn’t, instead he tried to crawl away, toward the entrance. Shinnok walked over toward him, closing their distance in strides where Raiden struggled just to pull himself that far. Raiden had his hands pressed against the entrance panels. His palms glowed, trying to enact the needed voltage to activate the levers. Shinnok didn’t allow him the chance.

Reaching out, Shinnok took Raiden by the neck and pulled him back, back toward the jinsei. It’s there he pushed him to the ground. His hat fell off, rolling away. Along with it, Shinnok pulled at Raiden’s covering revealing ivory hair neatly kept, yet a tug on the string unraveled any bindings and his hair cascaded down his shoulders beautifully.

Shinnok sank his hands into the strands, gripping. Intent to not let go. He inhaled Raiden again. He’s never felt his fear, especially not toward him.

“Please.”

Shinnok leaned back. He looked at Raiden who had his eyes clenched shut and teeth grit.

“Please,” Raiden said just as he opened his wide eyes. “Release me.”

Shifting his jaw, Shinnok couldn’t stop from smiling. This look, this helplessness was all so new, things only ever envisioned. To see it, to hear these pleas in the flesh was so exhilarating.

The hand in Raiden’s hair softened, now petting, combing. Shinnok’s other was falling down the god’s neck, down his chest, and down his pelvis. As soon as he grasped his loins Raiden jumped, trying to shift away but his pinned frame could either move more into Shinnok’s hand or back toward his torso. He had Raiden right where he wanted him.

“No,” Shinnok muttered against Raiden’s neck as he kissed him. “I won’t.”

Shinnok began to rub. While detesting the mere need and necessity of physical forms as compared to their true astral forms, Shinnok knew them well. And Raiden’s body was no different than his own. He palmed him gently but held him tightly so he couldn’t shift away. It took some time to even get Raiden to form any sort of stiffness, he was still fighting him.

The phallus in Shinnok’s hand was nowhere near as stern as he desired, but he couldn’t linger more than he had to. Pulling his hand out of Raiden’s trousers, Shinnok leaned back to tear back the rest of the bindings. Raiden shook from these actions, once more trying to rock away, but Shinnok caught him each time and pulled him back until he was bare and defenseless before him.

Raiden’s eyes were looking up at him, and Shinnok wondered if his sight returned. They still lacked their glow, but they were ever focused, ever frightened. Raiden could feel him, of course he could. And Shinnok could feel him. Every time his soul trembled, Shinnok shuttered, when Raiden shook with resistance Shinnok quaked with excitement. It all hastened his hands, both so eager to touch everywhere.

Raiden was crafted so very well. His muscles sung with each caress and his joints bent when Shinnok demanded they do so. Ever reluctant, but Shinnok had Raiden flat on his back, his hands spreading his thighs, rubbing further between until they brushed over his entrance. Shinnok’s never felt Raiden shake more than when he touched him there. He quickly resorted to his magic to hold the god down so that his hands could roam him without resistance, but even as the gravity of his power laid Raiden out, the thunder god sparked, teeth grit as he tried to conjure his strength to fight back. It didn’t worry Shinnok, but he was mindful of it regardless.

A surprised gasp hefted out of Raiden the moment Shinnok pressed a finger into him. Wide eyes were now wider and resistance heightened. Raiden was able to nudge the position he was in, a feat for most, but nothing more. Shinnok added two more fingers, pressing in as deeply as they would go until the god finally succumbed to the heaviness of the Elder God’s magic.

“There you go. There’s no need to struggle.” Shinnok placed a kiss against the inside of Raiden’s thigh. His lips moved away with a tingle to them, he quickly licked over said sensation.

“What have I done?”

Shinnok looked away from his work toward Raiden’s face. There was horror, there was fright, but further detail revealed grief. Raiden’s eyes blinked, a slight flicker in them. Was his sight returning?

“What have I done for you to do this to me?” Raiden looked at Shinnok again, as if he could see him. Perhaps he could.

Rocking forward, Shinnok let his fingers spread making Raiden shudder and gasp, his eyelids fluttering and his head falling back to the floor in dismay. Pulling back, Shinnok removed his fingers and leaned up, the light of the jinsei blocked by his frame hovering over Raiden. That was when those flickering eyes looked at him again.

Shinnok’s hands were kind, caressing Raiden’s neck and jaw. “Why must you continue to see this as a punishment?” Shinnok closed his eyes briefly, taking in the proximity, their auras mingling—albeit reluctantly from Raiden’s side. It was a exhilarating moment. “Consider this a tribute, from me—” Shinnok pressed his lips against Raiden’s neck, biting down just enough to ensure a mark. The way he bent into him was perfect, and that reaction only ensured his other arm wound around him securely. “To you.” He intended to press his lips to Raiden’s, but the thunder god turned away at the last moment and Shinnok’s offered kiss fell against his cheek. No matter.

Leaning back, Shinnok divested himself of his robes and quickly unbound the ties to his pants. He was being watched, and the moment he revealed his ready state another round of struggling commenced. In this last ditch effort to free himself, Raiden managed to break the weight of Shinnok’s magic against his chest. He shot up with his legs and arms still pinned, fully intending to crush his skull against Shinnok’s. The outcome was foreseen and stopped by another flare of the Elder God’s power.

Sitting upright and still, Raiden still vibrated with resistance. Sparks flew, thicker, stronger than the previous ones. The ill effect from Netherrealm’s aether was beginning to flush out of his essence. No matter, Shinnok didn’t need Raiden weakened to have his way with him.

With a snicker Shinnok wiped away his holding spells. Raiden lunged at him, his hands around his neck. Now, all Shinnok could do was laugh.

“Go ahead, resist me. Try and kill me. The despair I’ll see when you realize you can’t.” After giving Raiden his short moment of relief, Shinnok reached out and took hold him, flipping him over and wiggling between his legs. He didn’t enact another holding spell, instead he held him down with his own hands and used his strength to overpower him and enter him.

Raiden’s cry rung throughout the chamber and electrified Shinnok’s very soul. Merging this way was so very primitive, but it tickled all the right sensations to take pleasure from and enjoy such an act, and Shinnok was so very _hard_.

A gasp passed out of Shinnok’s mouth the moment they connected and he shuddered at the feel of it all. “By the One, Raiden.” Groans and moans left on their own, Shinnok couldn’t help himself even as he looked down at the horrified expression scrawled across the thunder god’s face. “You feel amazing. Oh, I’m never giving this up, never.”

After the initial breech, Raiden was quiet. Aside from small grunts and groans while Shinnok thrust and bucked until he was so far inside him they nearly became one being entirely, he didn’t make much sound. However, it wasn’t something Shinnok found himself fretting over. His focus firstly was on himself as he bucked out a bruising rhythm until that pleasure he was seeking began to mount. After that he chased it until he caught hold of it and it erupted inside him.

Shinnok’s release came with the Elder God’s shudder. He leaned himself over Raiden, huffing, moving his lips again to taste him. When his hands roamed over the body below, he found Raiden quite lifeless and for a moment he wondered if he might have destroyed the god’s physical form. A further look from a distance only concluded a shattered soul. Raiden was the image of devastation.

It all made Shinnok throb and the more he throbbed the more he couldn’t resist bucking, feeling how tightly the thunder god clung around his cock. Shinnok may have found a satisfying release, but he was far from finished. He moved again, leaning back down and finding a pace similar to the one he had before. His chest rubbed against Raiden’s, hips moving until the sound of their collision echoed in the chamber around them.

Shinnok’s hands clung to Raiden’s thighs, pressing them against his hips as he moved, as his fingers dug into charged skin. There had been an attempt to send waves of electrical currents to ward off Shinnok’s intrusion but it only roused the Elder God and made his movement faster, deeper, harder. So Raiden laid there limply, his eyes finally glowing again, staring at the ceiling above.

A particularly hard jab had Raiden grunting and the sound lured Shinnok further down where his lips and teeth marred that perfectly sculpted chest. There were slight shifts from the thunder god, but Shinnok only passed them off as the rock of his body. It wasn’t until he nibbled on the god’s nipple that he felt any sort of reaction from Raiden. A gasp first and then, oh, and then Raiden spasmed for a second, tightening around Shinnok’s plunging length just enough to desire it again.

Licking the bud, Shinnok bit and tugged, the other he toyed with his hand. He felt Raiden react plenty to that. His hands came up and laid on his shoulders. Shinnok expected them to push, but they remained there, fingers dug in to the point that if Shinnok wasn’t careful the thunder god could get away with breaking his shoulder caps.

Moving his mouth away, Shinnok laid kisses down along Raiden’s neck, his hands still toying with the god’s nipples as he did so. When his teeth sank into his ear that was when Shinnok noticed the whimpers. He blinked, letting go of the lobe as he looked down at Raiden. He had his eyes closed, head turned away while his skin washed flush. His lips were moving as if he were speaking, but words didn’t often come out. Eventually, Shinnok connected what words did and found out he was praying.

“Elder Gods help me.”

“Forsake me not, Elder Gods.”

“Make him stop.”

“Don’t abandon me.”

“Please, please.”

“Elder Gods.”

“Elder Gods.”

In the midst of these muttered prayers, Shinnok moved one of his hands between them and when it wrapped around Raiden’s half flaccid cock the thunder god startled and the line of his cries were cut. Glowing eyes looked at him again and Shinnok loved him for it.

“I can hear you, Raiden.” Shinnok breathed along the god’s neck, licking him, leaving trails of spittle where he may. “I haven’t forsaken you.”

An angry grief flared in Raiden’s features, but any retaliation from it was met with Shinnok’s might as he came to his second release. His ejaculation made Raiden shudder, the field of his energy fluctuated with disgust and it all made Shinnok proud of himself.

Despite their boundlessness, Raiden looked exhausted. Shinnok could feel the weariness in his soul, but his own soared and he planned on keeping it in that state for as long as he could. Pulling out, Shinnok leaned away, watching as Raiden curled in on himself, his movements still lagging and limp. Shinnok certainly didn’t leave him lonely for long.

Twice now. Shinnok’s had the thunder god twice and it still didn’t feel enough. He pressed close again, his hands running along Raiden’s side, nails scraping down unmarred skin. He took hold of him again, pulling him against his chest. Raiden didn’t resist.

“I must admit I’ve not been kind. And after all your devotion that is wrong of me.” Shinnok’s hands rubbed down Raiden’s chest, once more tugging at his nipples. With his chin resting on the god’s shoulder, Shinnok could hear when he sucked his breaths in. He was panting all over again.

When one hand slid down over the bumps of defined abdominal muscle and played with curling hair just below, Raiden shifted. He was trying to move away from the touch, but it only pressed his back more into Shinnok’s chest. He was encased in the Elder God’s grasp. Finally, Shinnok touched the softness of Raiden’s cock and it was his attentive and determined ministrations that made it begin to harden.

“Good, good.” Shinnok peppered Raiden’s shoulder with his lips and teeth even whilst he squirmed. A bite later made him still his stirring trouble. Tugging and twisting his nipple while his other hand caressed his cock only got Raiden half hard no matter how long Shinnok played with him. So he abandoned the pert buds in favor of reaching down further and playing with his testicles. This time Raiden began to shake.

His thumb rubbed over the warm phallic head, waiting for the moisture to build. Raiden’s resistance to make sound hindered Shinnok’s astuteness, but being so close, Shinnok paid attention another way. Even though Raiden’s breathing came off as controlled, Shinnok knew better. The pitches, the hitches, they were all so clear when he played with him, when he rubbed him a certain way, when he squeezed just the right amount of pressure.

Raiden gasped when Shinnok bucked against him and the Elder God felt him twitch in his hand. Eyes blinked and smile sharpened. So he did it again. He received the same reaction, and so he began to hump against Raiden, timing his gyrations with the glide of his palm.

A low gasping groan along with the roll of Raiden’s head came from Shinnok slipping two fingers back into him. He was tight, clinging to his fingers as they moved inside him in time with his bucks. Shinnok could feel the residue he left inside the god as well as the moisture building up along his own cock as he rubbed himself between Raiden’s powerful thighs.

With his rubbing thumb, Shinnok found his pleasure in finally feeling moisture collect along the tip of Raiden’s cock. He was fully erect and, with a feeling squeeze, throbbing. So was Shinnok.

Moving both hands to the god’s hips, Shinnok guided Raiden back, entering him again. His warmth and tightness felt perfect, now all he needed to do was move. Clinging, Shinnok kept Raiden on his lap as he moved inside him, using his magic to tug at him, to make him move.

Seeing Raiden so tired, so disheveled was Shinnok’s favorite vision, especially as he made him bounce on his cock. The pleasure mounted again, and strong hands forced Raiden down harder, faster. But these hands also ran down thighs, cupping Raiden’s testicles and cock, squeezing just as Shinnok pressed in deep, and sliding as he moved back. In this end, Shinnok pulled Raiden along with him and felt him cum over his hands. That was when Raiden shook out a sob.

Lurching over, Raiden fell to the ground on his hands and knees. His eyes were wide, irises glowing, flickering with an array of emotions. Shinnok watched him while he stood and stepped away, fixing his robes to make sure he looked presentable.

As Shinnok turned he cut into the fabric of Earthrealm and sent out his essence as a signal. It was only a moment later that Cetrion answered, coming through and taking his offered hand. Through the portal he led her into the realm and the jinsei chamber. She looked lovely in the ethereal light. He smiled at her and she returned one of her own, but then her eyes fell upon Raiden.

Immediately her face fell. Concern washed over her. She even took a step closer as if in need to lend him a mending hand, but Shinnok halted her with a firm grasp. As she looked at him, she realized what he’d done.

“Why did you . . .?”

“To prepare him for you.” Shinnok pulled both of Cetrion’s hands to his mouth and kissed her knuckles tenderly. His eyes were soft toward her, but they were ablaze when they turned toward Raiden’s shaken form. “He has sated me, sister. He will sate you.”

Tugging Cetrion along, when Shinnok let go he watched his sister move closer toward Raiden. She even knelt down beside him. That was when Raiden realized she was there. His horrified eyes flashed with an interesting amount of hope. Then he was reaching out, clinging to her.

“Lady Cetrion!” Raiden gasped, his hands shaking as he tried to hold her, instead, she held him. He didn’t fight her as he tried Shinnok. “You’ve come. Lady Cetrion, please. Give me strength, give me aid. Please.”

Shinnok could feel his sister’s heart. She was touched by Raiden’s pleas. There was obviously a need to tend to that sorrow in his voice, so was her nature, but Shinnok could always feel the desire in her aura. And it was heightening as she held the thunder god.

When Cetrion shifted, it was to place both her hands along Raiden’s face. She gave him a gentle relief for the pain he was in, just a small amount, but she did nothing more except lean in and kiss him. When she leaned away the look on Raiden’s face was one of utter betrayal. Cetrion leaned in and kissed him again but Raiden pulled away and escaped her arms.

There was nothing more to be said. Shinnok came up alongside his sister, offering her support and strength should Raiden become unruly again. With a short glance between one another Shinnok watched Cetrion make her decision. After a wave of her hand her covering vanished.

Cetrion’s physical form was the epitome of feminine beauty. Even Shinnok felt himself stir at the sight of her uncovered. But Raiden only rejected her as he tried to move away while she pressed ever closer.

Leaning back down, Cetrion took hold of Raiden and placed his hand upon her breast. She then moved over him and laid herself across his hips. She tried to kiss him again but he turned away so she laid her lips across his jaw.

The Elder Goddess rolled her hips, her hands running down Raiden’s sides and then his arms, moving them to make him hold her. But Raiden wouldn’t. No matter where she positioned him he would pull away. His cock hadn’t even stirred as she rubbed herself against him. That just wouldn’t do.

Shinnok came then. He sat himself behind Raiden, taking him into his arms, and leaning forward just enough to meet his sister. They kissed, their tongues reaching out in greeting before Shinnok moved back and gripped Raiden, his hands rubbing him in ways they have before.

It took four of Shinnok’s fingers to stimulate the god enough for Cetrion to sit on. As soon as she did she arched, a relieved sigh fell out of her lips as her breasts pressed against Raiden. Cetrion was never more beautiful than in that moment of her ecstasy.

Her moans were enough to create discomfort along Shinnok’s groin, but he managed, helping hold the thunder god while Cetrion rolled herself, bouncing and taking him in with enthusiasm. His fingers worked, keeping Raiden where he needed him to be, but it wasn’t enough, at least not for Cetrion.

With his other hand, Shinnok reached out to caress Cetrion’s jiggling breasts, pulling on her nipples. She tightened, Shinnok knew this because Raiden groaned, a subconscious buck was forced from him. His hands laid over Cetrion’s hips, gripping. Despite his resistance, Cetrion was giving him pleasure.

These reactions encouraged Cetrion to lean back in. She wanted to kiss Raiden, but once again he turned his face away, his eyes cast down as if he was ashamed of her—or was it himself? The dismay in Cetrion’s eyes was there for a moment, all before Shinnok pulled her closer, moving her so she would only focus on what she was feeling inside her body, not inside her soul. His teasing fingers pressed between her thighs, rubbing her lips and the nub in between until his hand came back moist.

Shinnok held Raiden as he shoved his sticky fingers into his mouth. There were muffled protests, and a short struggle, but Cetrion’s constant movement made the thunder god weak in the knees and every other joint. The scent of it all Shinnok inhaled in heavy breaths. It was disgusting as it was perfect; the three of them.

“Oh, Raiden!” Cetrion moaned, her hands holding onto Raiden’s face as she peered at him with bright green eyes. She trembled like her inner walls, hugging Raiden’s cock until it got what it wanted. It was the combination of Cetrion’s tight core as well as Shinnok’s delving fingers that brought Raiden into his orgasm. And Cetrion let out a long singing moan at the feel of his sperm washing her insides.

She leaned back on her palms, her hips still rolling, trying to milk the thunder god for all he could give to her. Her eyes met Shinnok’s then and they stared at each other in the silence of their completion. The sin they’ve committed didn’t at all shatter their beating hearts. Instead it brought them together, binding them tightly. With one another they would be rid of any shame that came later.

As soon as Cetrion pulled away and let Raiden slip out of her, Shinnok let the thunder god go as well. He stepped around him and took his sister in his arms, kissing her just as she kissed him. Their mouths remained connected for the time it took their hands to pass caresses between each other. When they parted their eyes spoke of conversations between Elder Gods, between each other. They looked back toward Raiden once.

Shinnok could feel grief poking into Cetrion’s aura. So he took her hands and tipped her chin back toward him. “Are you sated, sister?” His hand rubbed down her abdomen.

Cetrion looked back over toward Raiden and then left her eyes only on her brother. She nodded. “I am.”

Tightening his hold on her hands, Shinnok smiled for her. “Then let us return home.” He broke the barriers again to usher in a portal and offered Cetrion the honor of stepping through first. Before he did he looked back, taking in the light and sight of Earthrealm’s jinsei. There was a tinge of regret that he didn’t allow himself to bathe in it, but he stamped that out with the resolution that he would return to Earthrealm and to the jinsei. Lastly, his eyes roamed over Raiden. He laid there, fully awake and fully ravaged. Shinnok would come back for him as well. Inevitably.


	2. Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh god there's more . . .
> 
> WARNINGS: Rape. Heavy Incest. Author ignoring canon. I mean, it is fanfiction. Mature Content. Situations. Lotsa NonCon. Voyeurism. Soul Sucking. Everybody wants to rule Earthrealm. Bad Writing. Author can't grammar alright!
> 
> Don't like? Don't proceed any further. 
> 
> For the rest of y'all, enjoy my sheeeet~

Shinnok had been prepared. He had readied every word needed to excuse his and his sister's actions, as well as the evidence for the other Elder Gods' controversial deeds should they try to ensnare him in his. But no day of judgement was called upon because Earthrealm's protector never spoke about what had happened, in fact he remained absent for many years until a global calamity forced him to seek council in the heavenly courts.

No one questioned Raiden's recently spotty attendance because many other gods were caught up in their own struggles. Realms were a mess, and many bright eyes looked up to the Elder Gods for relief and advice, though not Raiden's, not any longer. Gone was his bold attentiveness, in its place was downcast eyes easily mistaken for reverent humility, and few spoken words were assumed to just be sudden reservation.

He never looked at the Elder Gods again, instead opting to bow to conceal this unusual behavior. The others never noticed, but Shinnok and especially Cetrion did. Shinnok's eyes watched his sister's aura fall into dismay as Raiden pulled himself away, leaving as quickly as he came.

Since the submission of Raiden's body Cetrion and Shinnok offered blessings upon his realm. Cetrion in the form of new springs and excellent crops, and Shinnok in the form of population longevity and fertility. Yet even these gifts of favor were ignored.

As tender as Cetrion was the constant rejection took a toll on her and more often than not she would be found sulking. It was how Shinnok found her after a council gathering.

Situated by a pool, Cetrion waved her hand over the waters, moving the liquid as she did. Laying just at the edge she propped herself up on one elbow, her eyes downcast not just to watch the ripples flutter by, but because of the ache inside her soul. Shinnok didn't need to call out to her to announce his presence, his aura simply reached out and brushed hers right as his hands did while he knelt down beside her reclined form.

Brushing back the vines of his sister's hair, Shinnok leaned over her shoulder and kissed her neck. "You trouble me lately. I've never seen so you so grieved. Where once you chided me over my heavy spirit I believe now it is my turn to do so to you."

Cetrion took the hand Shinnok offered and sighed. "He doesn't look at me any longer. Even though he did so before without the tenderness of affection, I still had his eyes on me."

Raiden; the god they both figuratively and literally fucked.

Shinnok frowned. "Here I am, ready to advise you not to fret over him, yet I do the same." Sighing, Shinnok laid his chin along Cetrion's shoulder, the hand holding hers rubbed fingers tenderly. His gaze fell off into pleasant times where the both of them were none-the-wiser as to how strongly they'd be taken by their affections. Now, the memories of their pleasure plagued them, a cruel vice reminding them of their euphoria and of their unrequited pursuits all at once.

Behind Shinnok's eyes danced the time he held the thunder god, much like he held Cetrion now. His sister was slim and beautifully curved, Raiden was broad and excellently crafted. As Shinnok ran his hand down Cetrion's breast he remembered doing the same to Raiden. Cetrion hummed out a moan but Raiden had grunted, noises of disapproval heightened as did his struggle.

Leaning into her brother, Cetrion looked over her shoulder, her green eyes bright with encouragement. Reaching back, Cetrion wound her arm around Shinnok's neck while he groped her. Their bodies pressed ever closer in remembrance of a time when they had a third.

Lips met softly at first but Cetrion pressed against Shinnok's hand to guide him into holding her tighter. So he squeezed her, his fingers slipping beneath her layers until they rubbed at her budding nipple, tugging and even twisting. Cetrion moaned into Shinnok's mouth, the sound of it shook his soul and rattled his body into arousal.

Rubbing where he may, Shinnok brought his hands over Cetrion's abdomen, up her arms, over her collar, around her hips. She spread her legs for him as he caressed her thighs.

The vision of her aching body continued to fade away into a place, a chamber of white-blue light. Who lay underneath him was not the sister whom he loved but a deity whom he desired. Moving his lips away from Cetrion's, Shinnok laid kisses along her shoulder and then up her neck. Her skin didn't tingle with charges, and the expanse of her slender jaw wasn't the same as the defined feature Shinnok once laid his lips across.

These flashing memories moved the subconscious motions of his hands in an attempt to recreate that fulfilling night. Cetrion's body vibrated with the sound of her moans, stirring Shinnok's loins. He bucked against her and her voice sang. Their movement together spurred their hands to grip and grasp just as lips met.

Shinnok could feel Cetrion's hands as they brushed against his, moving down her own frame where her body shuddered the most. Cetrion's fingers slid against Shinnok's hand rubbing her thighs until she slunk them further and delved them into her core. Her moans thickened as she moved with herself, pushing back into her brother as he thrust against her.

Her movement was met with a partner as Shinnok's caressing hand fell over Cetrion's and pulled and pushed to direct the penetrating fingers. The slick coating their hands quickened their movement until it was erratic and Cetrion could hold her voice back no longer.

"Oh, ooh! Oh, Raiden, oh, oh, Raiden!" Cetrion arched, pressing her form back against her brother until she clamped down on her plunging fingers and brought herself to an unsatisfying end. Shinnok fell just behind her, gasping out his breaths over her shoulders, holding her tightly.

Cetrion shook. Her essence; once full of twisting pleasure now broke into pieces in her unappealing release. Her body was heavy in Shinnok's embrace and the reflection in the pools below only revealed the downcast eyes of his sister's depressed face. A damnable offense, one Shinnok took upon himself.

They didn't regret what they did, only that their passions fell short in remaining content. Their desires, their urges were now stronger than ever and the thunder god's continual shun of their attention and gracious gifts was starting to aggravate them, especially Shinnok. Seeing his sister pull herself into a depression only furthered his resentment, having her in his arms in all her glory and still not finding satisfaction finalized it.

Since their departure Shinnok always meant to return, but his prolonged arrival remained reluctantly intentional. Should Shinnok return he didn't plan to leave Earthrealm in the hands of its protector, nor its protector to the binds of that realm. With such lofty goals one had to make certain that once enacted it could never be undone. Not by the other realms, nor by his fellow Elder Gods, and especially not by the universe.

But enough time has passed and now was as good a time as any to enact such operations.

"I will see you smile again." Shinnok departed Cetrion with a kiss. He left the heavenly courts without so much as a word though the other Elder Gods parted him with scrutinizing gazes which made Shinnok wonder how much they knew of his intentions. He didn't linger on the meaning behind their glares, not when he had a civil war to see to.

Because of the potential to threat, Lucifer forbid the use of soul magic. Now the Brotherhood of the Shadow were a large number and upon this decree they revolted. Their sorcery allowed them to pit themselves against the armies of hell and force a stalemate. It's been over a thousand years now, and Shinnok's patience was stretched as far as he would allow it.

Shinnok appeared in Lucifer's courts. The angel looked exhausted, and murderous eyes that were once glaring at his incompetent generals now turned toward the Elder God.

"You!" Lucifer's face shifted into a snarl. He leaned forward on his throne. His unbalanced movement indicated he was injured from some previous altercation. Good. "You are the reason for this war and yet you dare come before me?!"

Shinnok stood tall, silent, and undaunted.

"Why have you done this? You want my attention? Fine! You have it. Now what do you want from me?"

The corner of Shinnok's mouth twitched. "It's bold of you to assume I want anything from you. No, your inadequacy led to this. You could have embraced them, you know. Had you; they wouldn't be so against your rule. It was my gift to you, but your inability to act on it has forced my hand."

Lucifer tensed. His body shifted. His eyes narrowed. He was ready to fight. "You want my throne."

"I want your armies."

That was when Lucifer laughed at an Elder God. "You're wrong if you think my devotion to you is so absolute that I would move my forces at your whim."

"I know where your devotion lies, Lucifer." Shinnok's visual displeasure deepened. "I do not need you to command the armies. They will move under my voice and mine alone."

Columns rose to form a barrier in front of Shinnok the moment Lucifer's hellfire projected toward him. Netherrealm's ruler now stood, fists clenched, and fangs bared.

"Like hell I'd let you overthrow me!" Lucifer charged horns first. He was fast, but his injuries from the long war slowed down what true strength he had. Shinnok maneuvered around him easily. His arms behind him, he didn't even bother lifting a finger in his defense. If the devil came too close then Shinnok would raise barriers and push out forces. It all infuriated Lucifer.

Perhaps that mounting rage would have showed a peek of Lucifer's might, but before it even boiled the steam began to pull away, sucked by the very oni he had employed. Quan Chi stood amongst the fallen generals, one hand curled out toward their fallen frames, a faint glow of green swarmed around it similar to the heavy mist around his other hand held out in Lucifer's direction. His magic had bonded to the Netherrealm lord protector and Lucifer faltered and fell to his knees.

Shinnok sneered, looking down at the pathetic deity. "You forget your place. I am an Elder God."

Lucifer's eyes burned up at him, even as his power was pulled away by the very thing he fought against. "And I am this realm's god! You have no right to do this to me!"

"Who do you think gave you this principality? Sniveling worm." Shinnok nodded to Quan Chi who came closer, forcing Lucifer onto his hands. He groaned, shaking from the strength leaving him. "As I have given it, as I have taken it back."

With a twist, Shinnok aimed his arm toward Lucifer's throne. In the blink of an eye, skeletal fingers reached up, taking hold of the structure and crushing it. Nothing more was left but ruble.

He looked back at Lucifer, so glad he wasn't dead yet so that he could witness the fall of his regime. Shinnok smiled. "And I have the only right in this universe to take what I want."

Netherrealm's unrest killed many an enemy, created warriors, and multiplied Shinnok's followers. As great as the current numbers were, there was always a need for more. But time was of the essence. Shinnok could not wait to replenish forces he would need to ensure a complete unopposed invasion. So he fed souls to his armies, and it was the torment still inside those digested writhing spirits that filled the oni with the energies they needed to run through the broken barriers Shinnok had created and into Earthrealm.

The sheer speed with which the forces struck took each great realm by surprise, especially Earthrealm's protectors. But the gods did try. What warriors they had were sent to grounds they were meant to hold, however none lasted long. Netherrealm's armies were too great and their monstrous strength no earthling could fight against for long.

The skies were dark, filled with heavy winds and deadly lightning. The grounds quaked and the fiery lakes below bubbled toward the top. Earthrealm's elemental gods were now involved since their armies were overrun. But even with their strength, Shinnok planned to run them over as well.

As his armies encroached upon the sky temple Shinnok decided it was time Earthrealm remembered him. Stepping onto the soil again filled the Elder God with a sensation and he inhaled each beat. It was as if the realm was welcoming him back.

Beside him was Quan Chi. Ever since the initial invasion the oni sorcerer had possessed heavy traits of hesitation. Especially now that they faced returning to Raiden's temple.

"Does this war not suit you?" Shinnok didn't need to turn to know the oni's eyes were on him.

"My lord?"

Shinnok shifted, his lips twitching as he watched his armies climb over the risen platforms of terrain while the god of earth attempted to fell them. They were like ants and soon enough even the stone god couldn't move mountains against them. Shinnok's forces continued upward.

"Your steps have been slow since entering this realm. Is it the memories of this place that makes you so hesitant?" When Shinnok looked at Quan Chi the oni's eyes fell away. There was shame in his posture but more than anything else Shinnok detected fright.

Quan Chi bowed. "Forgive me, my lord. I do not intend to become a hindrance."

"Then it is a coward." Shinnok arched a brow and pursed his lips. He made sure Quan Chi could see his displeasure.

It was common for the oni to argue his worth right about now, but he did no such thing. Instead his shoulders squared and his fists clenched. With trembling eyes, Quan Chi took a bold step forward. "They were sent on us! Four gods against a group of oni who could only defend themselves with minimal magic. They saw past our disguises and tore us asunder for our trickery. I would have been among their fallen numbers hadn't I ran. And now that I'm here again I can't help but fear that you will abandon me just like you did before."

"It has been some time." Shinnok looked back toward the sky temple. His army already overtook the earth god as they had the fire god. The winds were getting stronger the higher they ascended. "Your magic is stronger, your knowledge over it deeper than before. You survived for this moment, and for your place by my side do you think I won't reward you?"

The animosity vanished from Quan Chi's eyes. Surprise and hopefulness filled them along with these words. "What might you give me, Lord Shinnok?"

With the oni's loyalty further secured, Shinnok set his eyes on his climbing forces. He was so very close. "Dominions, treasures, pleasures, whatever it is you want I will provide. So is it befitting for my follower." Quan Chi stood taut with anticipation. Good. "Now, go bring down the temple doors."

Quan Chi portaled away, reappearing at the front of their forces. The winds were set against them but the oni managed to cast a withering spell that dissolved the large temple doors. There were guards inside, each one laden in gear, each one armed, each one ready to face the legions of hell. Each one fell by Netherrealm's numbers.

The weather surged. Rains fell like waterfalls. The wind's howls raged until its power forged cyclones. And the thunder rumbled, cracking down lightning to strike at the invading force.

When Fujin appeared it was through the belly of a cyclone that shattered many an oni who stood too close to the broken temple doors.

"No being in or of Netherrealm is welcome here!" Fujin stood there strong, eyes glowing bright, with the winds hovering at his beck and call. "Return to your master like the disgraced dogs you are!"

The fury of Fujin's winds cut into the standing forces. With each gust the oni were whittled at, and it would have continued like so hadn't Quan Chi summoned his fellow sorcerers together to bind the wind god with their magic. Fujin broke through the first three spells but the fourth took hold of him and with another command, Quan Chi and the other sorcerers began to drain the deity.

Fujin fought more than expected, but even from where Shinnok stood in witness to the entire event, he wasn't given the chance to see his near-end because Raiden came down on a pillar of lightning, breaking the spell and disintegrating most of the castors.

Shinnok's eyes shined with interest. His body even leaned forward as if in need to press himself closer to the deity. His aching spirit called out and the more he watched Raiden decimate his armies the more he could hold himself back no longer.

Even numbers could overwhelm the godly, yet where Fujin and their other brethren failed, Raiden took up. He matched these forces with his own might and the power he carried surged them back enough for him to tend to his brother. Shinnok made sure the healing didn't get far.

There was no attack, no threatening signal or even a word. The moment Shinnok appeared on the temple grounds Raiden's very form tensed. He pulled away from Fujin and turned to set his eyes on the Elder God.

Oh, the hate in those glowing irises.

Shinnok smiled. "It's good to see you again, Raiden. You look . . . magnificent." His eyes roamed down the god's body. Raiden was dressed in ebony and scarlet, he remained covered more so than he had before with sleeves running long and a cloak clipped to his shoulders, swaying in the wind. He looked absolutely fierce, and quite attractive in the splatter of long-gone foes he eradicated.

"How dare you show yourself here again after what you did!" Raiden's teeth were bare, grit as he clenched his fists, his entire form twisting with charged currents. "Is this invasion your doing?"

Shinnok nodded. "Of course. You think Lucifer would ever be so bold to use the might of his realm? Not that he would even be strong enough. Of course it falls to me to carry out where he fails."

Fujin stood back up. He was crouched more than usual, but he managed a fighting stance, one right beside his brother. Even Shinnok caught the look be passed to the elder deity. Fujin was full of worry, and grief. He knew.

"What madness has come over you?" Raiden took a step forward just to be ahead of Fujin in an endearing show of protection, yet Fujin struggled to remain by his side in his own bout of brotherhood. Not this time, though. Raiden wouldn't be able to protect it all; his people, his brothers, his Earthrealm.

"Not madness, resolve."

As quick as the thunder god was he never dueled with an Elder God who was just as fast, if not faster. Shinnok took both brothers by surprise when he lunged forward, appearing just a hair length away. Raiden immediately leaned away in an attempt to dodge anything the Elder God was about to relay, but Shinnok did not go after him, no, instead he went after his brother.

Fujin's eyes only managed to widen before Shinnok's force struck him in the gut. With a twist of his palm Shinnok sent the wind god hurdling. His victory over the sudden attack came to an end the moment Raiden lunged forward, his body electrified. He struck Shinnok, and the Elder God fell away from the strength of the impact hitting a pillar near the temple's entrance, the collision snapping it in two.

From the excitement of it all, Shinnok couldn't help but laugh.

"It's the audacity that attracted me to you, Raiden." Shinnok stood, completely unfazed and unharmed. Smile sharp. "You've been given so much; power, wealth, resources, influence, and yet use so little, favor such meaningless things. And now you challenge an Elder God. For some time I wondered if you lost that spirit, but I can see it even now and I'm so very glad. It stirs me again for you."

Raiden struck him again. He flew at him and slammed Shinnok into the ruble, breaking through it and then sending him flying into the second towering pillar. What a shame, Shinnok quite vividly remembers the hard work the carpenters put into their shape.

Nothing was spared. Raiden attacked where he could. His lightning caught anything nearby and rendered it to char.

The moment Shinnok finally struck back he landed the blow against Raiden's ribs. He heard the god's physical bone structure snap. A surprised gasp coughed out of Raiden's mouth, eyes wide as he fell back against the roof shingles.

Raiden caught himself and held his form well after the damage he took. The glow in his eyes shifted from blue to white and sometimes an angry shade of red. The moment he rose his arms the skies above answered him and lines of zagged lightning fell down into his palms. Shinnok knew he would hurl the bolts his way but he stood there to take the damage anyway.

He wasn't hurt. Even though forced to take on this physical form an Elder God's frame was so much sterner than pathetic mortals, and even the lesser gods. However even he was prone to fall away from the force of it all. Raiden's attack broke the shingles underneath Shinnok's feet and he fell.

The Elder God hadn't had time to hit the floors below before Raiden came after him. With just snapping speed, Raiden was able to bounce back and forth and land numerous strikes on Shinnok. None of which hurt but they did move his body. He slammed against a wall, cherished relics around shattered in the disarray of it all.

When Raiden came for him again, Shinnok didn't let him touch him. Instead he caught the thunder god just as he lunged his arm toward him. The electrical blade formed near his fist didn't even pierce Shinnok, but the hold brought them so much closer.

With a pleased smile, Shinnok slammed his head against Raiden's. The thunder god stumbled back, but Shinnok clung to him, keeping him in his grasp. The moment Raiden's disorientation waned he pulled back—at least he tried to.

During the struggle, Raiden's power shot out, marring their surroundings until the floor gave way and they fell deeper into the temple. This descent became Raiden's bastion for escape, but every punch, every kick, every jab put no further distance between him and the Elder God.

They both collided on the stone ground, and once the security of sturdy earth was present they carried on their struggle in the glow of white-blue light. Shinnok looked away from his adversary just for a moment. The mere sight of the jinsei brought elation to his spirit, and a thrill down his spine.

"This place." Even though it was a sin to turn away from Earthrealm's most beautiful piece he did so anyways, setting his eyes on the deity he was currently straddling. "What fond memories I have here."

Raiden's wide eyes sparked. He vanished underneath Shinnok and formed himself at an easier distance. Shinnok let him of course.

Standing, Shinnok looked at Raiden. He was shaking, completely infuriated. His not-so-hidden trauma was absolutely perfect and all Shinnok wanted to do was spread it.

"You won't ensnare me here again!" There was a wariness in the way Raiden stepped. It was obvious he wanted to attack but memories of an entangled time before made him heavy with hesitation. "I am this realm's protector, I will not yield to you!"

Shinnok straightened himself. "Not yet you haven't." With a twitch he summoned skeletal palms, they reached up and took hold of the thunder god before he could muster enough courage to charge him again.

For security's sake, and for the pleasure, Shinnok tightened the hold. Hearing Raiden's body crack and snap from the pressure was elating, hearing him cry out from the mounting pain was all the more. Shinnok could listen to those sounds for centuries.

Yet even in this torment and incapacitation, Raiden continued to struggle. His own blood ran past his teeth and out of his nostrils. Bone white stained red. The thunder god’s physical form was tattered, but he moved his broken body further than he should in a means to break free. It all fascinated and amused Shinnok.

"When will you give in?" Pressing closer, Shinnok ran his eyes down the god's struggling form. Clenched teeth helped to keep most pained sounds at bay, and sparks slipped even past Raiden's clenched eyes. "I am not some barbaric usurper. Earthrealm will flourish under my rule." Shinnok reached forward, his hand slipping through the sections of clamped bones to touch Raiden. He pressed his palm against Raiden’s rising chest and then slid down toward his side in a caress, a much gentler touch than his previous ones. "Just as you will in my bed."

Eyes shot open, white and electrified. His mouth opened with a shout. From his very core, Raiden charged a devastating attack one that spread throughout his body and disintegrated anything near.

The skeletal fingers fell away in pieces. Shinnok was even forced back a few paces. The light of it illuminated the chamber for but a moment and when it faded the cratered scene around remained inspiring.

There Raiden stood on shaking legs. He stumbled but never fell. Instead he understood his exhaustion and aimed for a means to fix it.

Shaking eyes held Shinnok's position. Raiden was covered with blood and his posture lagged, but he showed his resilience. Fists still raised, Raiden held his threating aura even as he retreated, moving further away from his opponent and toward the bubbling jinsei just behind.

As soon as Raiden was close enough he reached his arm back, absorbing the powers of the life force. The energy flowed through him, illuminating him. As a conduit, Raiden expelled the absorbed power and used it to shoot what rods he could toward Shinnok.

The blasts struck the Elder God and the area around. The cavern rumbled from the destruction; pillars crumbled and the ceiling broke apart. Dust settled as well as devastation when Raiden realized Shinnok still stood.

Shinnok grinned as he approached. "Even in your pending defeat you still refuse to use the jinsei fully. Why, Raiden, it's as if you're trying to lose."

Instead of just one arm, Raiden covered both in the jinsei, aiming his attacks continually at the approaching deity. It still didn't stop him. Even though Raiden's hesitation to encase himself fully in the life force remained, Shinnok's approach made him move.

With no other choice, Raiden merged himself with Earthrealm's jinsei. His entire body glowed and as Raiden absorbed its power he transformed. Tendrils rotated around him like a halo. Stark white, Raiden shined with an ethereal blue. He looked like a flame, these wisps of absolute power flowing with his movement in such a mesmerizing way. Gone were the lacerations and the blossoming bruises once littering the thunder god and all of the weaknesses connecting them.

Shinnok couldn't take his eyes away. Raiden looked absolutely terrifying and so very beautiful.

It was overwhelming, even for Raiden; Shinnok could feel it. The air hummed with erratic pulses, and the subtle quake around the chamber the moment Raiden moved out of the well would only worsen the longer the thunder god remained in this elevated state.

As dangerous as the atmosphere became, shaking the walls brittle and dismantling every sturdy structure left constructed, the room’s inevitable collapse wasn’t on Raiden’s mind. He fully intended to obliterate Shinnok with the might of Earthrealm's life force. And it was with open arms that Shinnok accepted the attempt.

The light was blinding and the shatter of the grounds around deafening. The entire chamber was destroyed, a crater now opened wide to the gales and rains outside. Whatever bodily forces were left in the siege dematerialized and for a moment even the thunder and rain pour quieted.

Yet even in such devastation the one target Raiden aimed to vanquish remained. His fiery eyes were wide, his face—while morphed from the energies holding him together—showed traces of horrific shock. Shinnok stood there just as the rains braved to pour again.

"How is this even possible?" Raiden's voice rumbled the leftover debris around, but Shinnok could detect the subtle uncertainty rising in it. "You cannot have survived that!"

"But I did. Isn't that a call for concerns?" Shinnok found it amusing when he watched Raiden look down at himself, sudden doubt rising inside over the legitimacy of the power he absorbed.

The doubt moved away with a shake of the thunder god's head. Eyes narrowed, Raiden shook away any need for explanation and instead lunged, doing all that he could to ensure Shinnok's obliteration. But no matter the attacks he sent his way, Shinnok remained unaffected.

Taking hold of the Elder God, Raiden pushed him up high in the sky, through the black clouds and charged lightning. He intended to use his amplified might to shred the deity, but no matter his pull or tug, Shinnok refused to come apart, instead he slapped away any affect and fell down, taking hold of Raiden and ensnaring him in his arms.

The proximity should have melted him, yet Shinnok remained.

"What have you done?!" This time Raiden truly looked lost, lost in explanation and lost in victory. He struggled, but with nothing he did affecting Shinnok, dread began to set in.

Shinnok’s arms wrapped tightly around Raiden’s torso, the squeeze from his arms bent him against himself. He could feel the hammering of the thunder god’s heart pounding against his sternum, even the vibrating sound of vertebrae cracking rattled across his body. He didn’t break him, not yet, but the pained cries from the hold delighted Shinnok nonetheless.

"It's not what I've done, but what you've done. You have failed Earthrealm, Raiden. It's banished you as its protector." Shinnok squeezed again, humming at the feel of Raiden's spine cracking.

The thunder god's eyes fluttered, his very form fluctuated under Shinnok's grasp. He still persisted. And when he set his eyes on the Elder God, the fire in them raged.

"I have not failed yet!"

Shinnok chuckled as he shook his head. "You let another dominate you, therefore the realm's revoked your title as protector and given it all to me." Raiden's eyes, while furious, looked absolutely aggrieved. "It's why the jinsei's power won't harm me. I am Earthrealm's chosen now."

Raiden looked devastated, but his reluctance to relinquish his role and accept his fate was obvious. He cried out in his dismay and in that moment he made his last stand. Shinnok felt him concentrate the jinsei flowing through him and collect it in his core, from there he stroked it and aggravated it so that it would implode.

This suicidal event Shinnok would not allow.

When the Elder God tightened his grip, he felt a few of Raiden's vertebrae crack. It made the thunder god shake especially as Shinnok shifted, bringing one hand to firmly grasp his hood. When Shinnok forced his mouth over Raiden's the struggle intensified.

By right Shinnok could command Earthrealm's energies, and even though Raiden bottled it so deeply inside him it still moved. Out it came, as Shinnok willed, pulled from Raiden's very essence and into Shinnok.

This depletion dissipated their levitation. They fell together. In this descent and weakening, Raiden carried on his struggle more than Shinnok had expected but he welcomed it regardless if it meant he could hold him tighter and kiss him longer.

The transferred jinsei stirred Shinnok's physical frame. It transformed him just as it had Raiden, and with this extending power it all became too much and before he knew it he had snapped Raiden's back. His body went limp in his arms and he remained that way as soon as Shinnok landed on the ground.

Raiden was dead. Well, his physical form was.

Pulling away from cold lips, Shinnok laid Raiden down on the ruined earth below. It wasn't raining anymore. Nor were the winds rushing. The sky was clear, black and littered with stars. Their light was nothing compared to the shine swirling inside the Elder God.

Looking down, Shinnok took in the moment of Earthrealm's energies flowing through him. It was exhilarating. While he held his own power as an Elder God the extended might of an entire realm made him drunken. And he swayed amongst the destruction, letting the power swash inside him, flitter out, and then come back in.

Shinnok would have remained this way for an eternity if another presence hadn't distressed him.

"What have you done?" Cetrion stood but a little ways away. Her face was riddled with horror. Wide green eyes passed around the paved planes and remains of the deceased. When she looked down at Raiden's still figure she quickly turned back toward her brother for the answer she demanded.

Spreading his arms, Shinnok attempted to appease the Elder Goddess with a welcoming expression. "Sister, your eyes burn into me as if I committed some crime."

Cetrion approached. "You tricked me. You let me have my pleasure with Raiden so that you could excuse yours. Now you've upset the balance to try and steal Earthrealm's very life force!"

Shinnok ran his hands down his body, relishing in the might tumbling inside him. But his sister's livid expression turned him to move away from such pleasures. With a sigh he leaned away, releasing the jinsei from his body. The orb returned to its rotation where it originally collected, now situated amongst the ruble and destruction.

Finally, Shinnok turned back to Cetrion. "It is returned. I did not intend to keep it."

Cetrion pursed her lips. "But you intend to keep the realm. That is forbidden, Shinnok. You are an Elder God. You have no right to rule over a realm."

Shinnok pushed back. "I have every right." He motioned toward Raiden's lifeless form. "Earthrealm has accepted me. Yes, it was in due part because of my scheming, but trust me, sister, when I tell you I did this for us." Reaching out he took Cetrion's hands in his, holding them tightly. "I wanted a place for you, for me, for him. A place all our own. Where we wouldn't have to share; not our living space, not our resources, and not each other. Of course it had to be Earthrealm because don't we deserve the most beautiful realm?" One of Shinnok's hands rose, caressing down his sister's pained face. "You may judge me for my actions, but if I fall then I fall justified in my intentions. Search your heart, sister, you know this is my truth."

Cetrion looked absolutely grieved. She leaned into her brother's touch, but the pain in her eyes remained. She was worried, frightened for Shinnok. The other Elder Gods would put him on trial and though she might find favor with his testimony the others might not.

In the end, Cetrion wept. Pushing forward she wound herself in Shinnok's arms. "They will take this all from you, and so much more!"

Shinnok's arms only tightened around his sister. The sight of her tears made his chest ache. As he pulled away it was so he could cup her troubled face, wiping away each shed tear with his thumbs. "Then I will fight to keep what I've gained."

"You won't win," Cetrion reminded. She was afraid, afraid for him.

Leaning forward, Shinnok laid his forehead against Cetrion's. "Only if I'm alone. Would you stand aside as they punish me, sister? Would you let them bind me and banish me from the heavens? From your side?"

They've never been apart. Not like that. The thought of it was a frightening notion, but one Shinnok had to plant within Cetrion's mind in order to steady her loyalties.

When Cetrion shifted it was to dig her fingers into Shinnok's arms. "Do not say those things! Do not make me envision such times!"

"Then stay with me and let your mind dwell on other things. The night is young. Even the other Elder Gods would delay until sunrise to cast their judgmental glares." He pulled Cetrion closer, wanting her to move with him. "Come. Come, sister. If I only possess this for but a short time then come and see what I have."

Cetrion followed the lead of his hands. Shinnok turned her so that she could behold the destruction and the expanse of the area he had just conquered with his oni armies. In the distance these forces approached now that the struggles between the gods had ended.

Closer was the remains of the sky temple. Two-thirds was reduced to rubble and what was left standing swayed on unsteady beams. Its beauty and majesty long gone but its disarray inspired Shinnok in his present victory.

The sheer devastation wasn't something Cetrion found endearing. Shinnok could tell by the uneasiness he felt within her essence. As a goddess of life, it was understandable.

When the oni finally closed in and beheld the fallen thunder god they did so bow in Shinnok's presence. Quan Chi at the forefront of the mass admiration. Shinnok stood pleased by their presence but his sister beside him frowned at them.

"Netherrealm's oni?" Green eyes glanced toward Shinnok quizzically but knowingly. "I'm hesitant to ask what you've done with Lucifer."

Shinnok's proud smile sharpened, especially as he looked at Cetrion. "I assure you he was properly disposed of. Now both realms bow before me, as they will you." Leaning down he kissed his sister's hands. Thankfully she didn't pull away.

"Great God Shinnok!" Quan Chi hailed, arms raised in reverence. "This realm's protectors have been incapacitated. Its populace decimated and shackled. What more would you have of us?"

When Quan Chi glanced over toward Raiden's position, Shinnok devised the future. "Secure the remainder of the temple. Leave what you can unravished. After all, we have an esteemed guest with us." His praise over Cetrion kept her indignation silent.

Quan Chi once again looked over toward Raiden. "What of Lord Raiden?"

"You need not fear him. He is empty now, but he will heal. Take him along with his brethren to the temple, but do not shackle him. Place him in comfort, I will see to him when he revives."

The oni did as they were told and in their departure, Cetrion's eyes followed. "What plans do you scheme now?" She asked.

Shinnok looked at her for a moment, upset that her eyes weren't on him, but with a tug of his hands, she turned her attention back toward him. Her body moved where Shinnok led.

"Don't worry yourself over what I have planned." Shinnok pulled Cetrion further, stepping back until she was in his arms and the jinsei to his back. He kissed her then, softly, chastely. "Only promise that you'll be by my side when morning comes."

Cetrion delayed the return of her own affection for a moment. Shinnok didn't mind because he knew she would relent. She always did. When he felt her lips shift against his, first with a smile and then with a flutter. He met her again.

"You know I will," she hummed against his mouth and soon she was parting her lips, granting him access to her moist orifice.

Shinnok leaned into his sister, tilting his head to kiss her better, harder. Everything he gave she returned with just as much enthusiasm. In gratitude he passed the last bits of jinsei still coursing through his energies into her.

Cetrion gasped the moment it transferred between their mouths and into her. Pulling away, her eyes widened and her hands pressed against her chest. She looked at Shinnok with a small portion of confusion until the power phased through her, making her body tremble in the most beautiful of ways.

Leaning back in, Shinnok rubbed his hands across her breasts and his lips along her neck. "Do you want to feel that again?" Cetrion shuddered, her physical form couldn't stop trembling. Shinnok believes he felt her nod which moved him to take hold of her hands and pull her with him as he stepped back into the swirling jinsei. As soon as she was encased, Shinnok let her go and watched her very being inhale the power of Earthrealm.

"Take as much as you want. It is my gift for you."

Cetrion gasped, her body arching. Eyes bright, she fell into ecstasy. "Shinnok, it feels so wonderful!"

"Indulge, my dear sister," Shinnok encouraged. And she did. He watched Cetrion absorb the jinsei's power. It merged with her own and she shifted, her form close to transforming, but she was respectful and only took what was polite. Still, she tossed and turned in the vortex, hands moving across her body and eyes clenched shut. When she opened them again she set them on Shinnok. They were full of need.

Arms extended, Cetrion bade him closer. "Brother." And Shinnok heeded her.

Entering the jinsei again felt like the realms had merged all into one and seeped into their limited physical forms and it was all ready to tear them to pieces. Shinnok moved on that high, especially as his arms entangled with Cetrion’s and their bodies pulled close. Twirling in the energies had the Elder Gods smiling, giggling as their essences mingled making them shudder and moan. It wasn’t long until the sensations that kept pushing at every end of their forms moved them together.

Cetrion leaned in and kissed Shinnok. Both of her hands held the sides of his face while she floated a little ways up, her legs wrapping around his waist. The constriction moved Shinnok’s hands up against her thighs to hold, to rub.

Their kisses became feverous the more they mingled in the forces of Earthrealm’s energies. They tugged on each other’s essence, taking and then returning in similar fashion to the power phasing through then now. Each tongue twist, each nip pulled them closer than they’ve ever been before in the space of the vortex.

In every point of contact they sensed the jinsei’s flow in the other’s form and it made them want to take it and possess it for their own. It was why their hands rubbed, their nails raked, and their lips moved. The effects of such power in singular fashion is near overwhelming, but in sharing it was orgasmic.

Cetrion moved her hands across Shinnok’s neck, the tips of her fingers played with his the hem of his crown and the ends of his robe. Her lips covered his face with a multitude of kisses. Those that burned him the most fell along his parted mouth.

Having lived through this rush, Shinnok’s eyes were dazzled with the vision of his sister running through it herself. And the way she exerted this excess of energy into him only made him shudder. His body stirred as hers did and he pressed his hardness against her to let her know just how she affected him.

The space around them was so vivid and bright, and the sounds of their moans muffled in the shifting energies. There was no one else, no body present, no eye in the distance. The jinsei’s light turned all away, it was just the two of them.

Bright eyes looked at each other openly. Desire swirled behind their irises and even the paths of their hands felt inadequate to what they yearned for. So they twisted and tried to wind themselves in each other as best they could—just like the jinsei did to their essences.

Cetrion arched against her brother, her hips jutting as her strong thighs clung to him. Her nails raked down his neck, his back, his shoulders. She pulled him just as he clung to her. The heat inside her seared her emotions until but one remained and what other feeling should remain in these flames other than intense lust?

It made Cetrion shift and shake, trembling in these raging desires. These feelings passed through her brother as they touched and kissed. Shinnok’s own eyes widened at the sensations and then he shook in pain.

Sounds came from the Elder God, ones in relation to the ache throbbing his body. With his sister pressed so close he felt himself breaking apart. All he wanted was to merge with her as if he was the very force moving around them both. His groin pressed hotly against Cetrion’s thighs, and the touch enacted a sound from her as well.

“Shinnok . . .” Cetrion’s voice was barely above a whisper, but the way her lips moved against his face, Shinnok read every syllable. She yearned for him as he did for her, so he touched her as she would have wanted, his hands moving over her breasts, down her back, and between her thighs. The way she shifted against him encouraged him more, and when aching fingers slid up her thighs and rubbed her moist parts she keened.

Feeling Cetrion roll her hips against him, moving with his fingers and in turn rubbing his hardness in just the right ways further thrilled Shinnok. Seeing her wide green eyes on him made his own shine back. When she moved it was to grasp his robes. He let her slide them off his shoulders just as he let her hands roam down and rub along his skin.

A sigh passed from Shinnok’s mouth as Cetrion rubbed her thumbs over his nipples. After a short twist she brought her lips down to his neck and then further down his torso. She might have continued her descent too but Shinnok tugged against her chin and she looked up at him and saw his wish in his eyes. As she rose to cover his mouth with hers she dissipated her attire. The breath Shinnok let out passed between their teeth and dancing tongues.

A moan hummed out of Shinnok’s throat when he felt Cetrion’s warm soft hands reach into his pants and rub his cock. Her grip was firm and rhythmic in the way she pulled along with her own gyrations. It enticed his own hips to move with her as well as his teasing fingers to slip into her wet warmth.

The way she tightened around his rubbing fingers and sliding cock gave a rise in dissatisfaction. Shinnok growled at the nuisance of it all, especially when he had the Elder Goddess in his arms, bare and open. The frustration made him press harder, kiss rougher, and buck firmer.

Though they were no stranger to the other’s touches and kisses and caresses, Shinnok and Cetrion have never fully joined before. The times when their desire to tangle themselves together came over them they always parted prematurely, free of the lustful shackles they had once felt boiling inside their hearts. This happened every time. It was a strange and curious thing, but neither found it necessary to dwell much thought into—not until now of course.

Perhaps it was the energies heightening every sensation swirling in their bodies, or perhaps it was because it was the might of a realm that spurred them forward, but the need never vanished. Cetrion spread herself for Shinnok, and Shinnok positioned himself in promise for Cetrion.

“Shinnok!” Cetrion hugged him close, her legs wound around him tightly the moment he pressed against her core. He slipped inside her so easily that he quaked above her. Hands shook as they clung. His head spun at the feel of her velvety walls clasping around his throbbing cock. It all seemed so right and wrong in the sense that they should have done this eons ago. What a shame they staved themselves from this for no other reason than lack of desire. Well, the desire soared now and it wasn’t vanishing.

“Sister!” Shinnok gasped, his hands caressing Cetrion’s beautiful face before he leaned down and kissed her like he should. It felt so perfect, and when he rolled into her she loosened herself to let him slide inside her easily. Their moans passed between them and as they rocked against each other the world around them disappeared. There was nothing but the two of them, joined so intimately in the light of the jinsei encasing them.

Wide eyes met, bright and glazed with bliss. Cetrion was lain down, completely beneath Shinnok. He loomed over her, unsure what else to do but get lost in her. She did the same, eyes fluttering along with the sensations of their movement. Her arms hung around Shinnok’s neck, trusting him to guide them through this experience.

Their pace was slow, no, fast and intense. Perhaps both all at once. Shinnok took his pleasure as Cetrion did. And as soon as they thought they had their fill their hunger for one another amplified.

Cetrion’s cries sung in Shinnok’s ears, his own rumbling Cetrion’s body in every right way. She arched into him as he delved deeply into her. They quivered together, hands splayed, fingers curling. They moved so fluently together as if this was how they were supposed to be, and how they should always be.

Cetrion’s own legs wrapped possessively around Shinnok’s rutting hips, her strength alone pulling him in just as he pulled back. She basked in the way he moved above her and inside her, plundering every crevice she opened for him. And Shinnok took this invitation and used it for as long as he could because feeling her from the inside out was something else entirely and he did not intend to run away from these outstanding feelings.

Their kisses bruised, their teeth marked, their nails dug, and their arms clung. They were pressed so close together where no air hardly passed between. The movement of the jinsei clinging to their auras moved them into higher might, outreaching abilities. In their enacted passions their powers moved together in ways unimaginable. It created an urge inside Shinnok as well as one inside Cetrion. It made him claw at her skin, gripping her breasts hard as if he needed to shed her of this form—but he couldn’t.

The need to merge outside of these limiting bodies came during their climax. Cetrion’s muscles fluttered around Shinnok’s cock and squeezed him until he spent himself inside her. They rocked together, gasping against each other’s mouths while they took their pleasures from the other. Even after the intensity of it all fell into a subtle thrum they moved together, unable to stop.

“Brother,” Cetrion whispered against Shinnok’s neck as she clung close, her hips still moving with his. She was wet with her orgasm and the mix of his sperm. The way her insides clutched him proved she was intent to keep him, and all that he left, inside her.

Shinnok sighed into his sister, his lips pressing against her head. Beneath them the rock and dirt fell away to foliage. Cetrion’s pure bliss brought forth greenery that cascaded down the devastated mountainside. It covered the ruins of the siege, and the craters of godly struggles were concealed by rising woods. Her power was beautiful, and so was she, that was why Shinnok shifted, so that he could kiss her and that she could kiss him.

* * *

Returning to Earthrealm was unwanted but essential if Quan Chi wanted to remain at Shinnok's side. There were many oni, many potentials vying for said position. So he put his reservations and previous traumas aside to brave through this invasion.

Shinnok was right; Quan Chi was stronger in his sorcery but even with centuries of extended knowledge that didn't change the fact that he was the sole survivor of _that_ massacre. He and the others were told to come to Earthrealm, they were told to come before Raiden himself and give him the medallion. Shinnok had even cast a cloaking spell over them in the guise of the native populace. Yet it hadn't been enough to spare them when the god's brothers came after them for their trickery.

Quan Chi had been coated in his brethren’s blood as he ran. The mounting dead idled the slaying gods enough for the oni to secure time to pull on another disguise and hide himself away.

He ran deep into the temple. A frightening decision but the only location nearest in his panic. Filled with dread even as he mingled within the servants, Quan Chi kept moving until he found himself in a quiet chamber filled with a white-blue light. Even though he knew falling back into the home of the ones seeking his end was madness, he found a strange sense of peace there—that is until Shinnok came dragging Raiden in along with him.

The demands to empty the chamber was strictly followed by the serving attendants, but Quan Chi remained. He stood shadowed between two pillars, frozen and afraid. Afraid Shinnok would see him and find disappointment in his survival. His inability to move shook his very core and he knew that with the Elder God’s perception he would inevitably be seen or heard, but his master had other things on his mind that day than ensuring every soul left that chamber.

It was there Quan Chi stayed and witnessed Shinnok defile Earthrealm's protector. Raiden had been so sick from Netherrealm's aether exposure that his attempts to stop the Elder God from coming over him was pathetic. Yet even in the horror of it all, Quan Chi couldn't turn his eyes away.

The blatant brutality and complete dominance of the act stirred a twisted delight in the oni, especially in his loins. He couldn't help himself nor the hand that rubbed his groin until he was spent. He remained taut even after Shinnok and Cetrion had finished with the god.

The suffering and the sheer beauty of Raiden so exposed made the oni tremble with orgasmic bliss. When the Elder Gods left all he wanted to do was move closer and find his own pleasure with the thunder god, but he was afraid. Even in his hideaway Quan Chi's possible death floated around his mind, freezing his body from moving no matter how much he wanted to.

Earthrealm's gods had decimated his kind. And even though Raiden had been ruined Quan Chi felt his fear for him rise in the same time as his lusts. It was a good thing though because the chamber doors opened moments later, ushering in Fujin and the other gods, behind them stood scores of soldiers, weapons held in tight grasps ready to fight and defend. They never saw any enemy within the chamber, their eyes and hearts focused on Raiden’s shame.

Funny enough was the blindness of those who looked at Quan Chi. His testimony over the heinous act had been taken and only enraged Fujin and the others. And the moment he was released he ran back to the Netherrealm, never once complaining about his own misery until Shinnok returned centuries later.

Changing loyalties from Lucifer to Shinnok didn’t change Quan Chi’s predicament much. Aside from it all it was the Elder God who taught him magic, even if it was the barest minimum. He was also the only master to promise rewards for loyalty. And Quan Chi intended to submit his claims very soon.

Now he was tasked with keeping the temple from collapsing. So much of its stability was stripped away in the fight, but with his direction he had the oni soldiers secure the support beams, adding a few more for reassurance. It was also his job to ensure his brutish ghouls didn’t sack the place. The furnish and items inside were marvelous, and such pretty things were fit for spoils of war, though if the master forbade it then it was Quan Chi’s duty to uphold said law.

It was also his duty to form shackles strong enough to anchor the defeated gods. They chained them in the dungeons, stretched and helpless. Quan Chi would have done the same to Raiden’s body but the explicit instructions of what to do with him told him otherwise.

Raiden was carried into the temple’s lounging rooms. Quan Chi picked the biggest one. Aside from tipped over décor, and a few fallen tapestries, it was in the best condition. After a vocal command the oni carrying the thunder god’s body laid him down on the bed and then left.

A flick of his hand sent magic through the air. It attached to the furniture and other various objects around the room, piecing them together and lifting them all back into place. It didn’t take long for Quan Chi to straighten the room.

With the task done, Quan Chi took the time to turn back toward the occupant lain out on the silk sheets. One glance of longing would have been sufficient and appeasing enough for the oni sorcerer to leave but then he caught sight of the rise and fall of the god’s chest.

Life returned to Earthrealm’s god. Raiden still remained limp and unconscious but the noticed movement lured Quan Chi closer. Out of curiosity. At first.

With a wave of his hand, Quan Chi enacted an examining spell. He detected a heartbeat and a thrumming pulse. The injuries inflicted on the god were mending, and the fatal wound already in a state of transfiguring. Though despised, Quan Chi would forever marvel at the immortality of the gods.

Reaching down, Quan Chi placed his hand atop Raiden’s sternum. It was a light touch, one meant to examine for a short time, but the moment his palm pressed flat against the rise of a breath, Raiden’s returning warmth enticed Quan Chi closer still. His hands moved on their own, running along the broad expanse of the god’s chest and dipping over the definitions of his muscle.

A shudder shook through Quan Chi. His hands trembled the more he was allowed to touch. It felt so surreal, forbidden for one like him, yet he wasn’t burned alive or cursed from such actions. Raiden was powerful, a force that even went against the likes of Shinnok, yet there he laid, unresisting to Quan Chi’s caresses. Of course the oni continued.

Slipping over silken sashes and twisted rope, Quan Chi moved his hands underneath. The texture of the thunder god’s skin was something else. Smooth and tight, and there was this undercurrent that sent sensations up the oni’s arms, spurring him to spread the dark robes apart to see more of it, feel more of it.

Seeing Raiden uncovered felt like a sin, but it was one Quan Chi would commit a multitude of times. He was going to petition to his master for his reward. He wanted the thunder god. He wanted him all to himself.

As soon as Quan Chi’s hands grasped at the ties around Raiden’s waist a voice arose in the room, one that made him pause. And there was only one voice that could.

“I have no qualms with you looking but I hold every offense against you touching.”

Quan Chi twisted. There stood Shinnok, tall and majestic. His face was scrunched in disapproval, and it was that look which sunk the oni’s spirit.

Pulling his hands away, Quan Chi prostrated himself before the Elder God. “Apologies. I let myself get carried away. With these victories I had hoped I would be granted the reward promised for my services.” He glanced back at Raiden’s breathing form. “If you would gift me Lord Raiden then I won’t ask for anything else.”

Shinnok pursed his lips. “The thunder god is a coveted treasure, but one I will not part with.” Once again Quan Chi’s spirit tumbled over in defeat. “If you desire the divine then you may have any one of his brethren. Now leave here, you have no right to remain.”

Quan Chi only let his reluctance to surrender the god remain so much. Under Shinnok’s glare he left, deciding to keep his life than try and lose it against his master. However, just because he left the room did not mean his eyes had.

His enchantment remained attached to the items he reconstructed. It was from their frames and energies that he could envision the room. Shinnok stood beside the bed where Raiden lay. He moved closer just as Quan Chi had.

Instead of simply viewing, the Elder God dipped himself down onto the bed, settling right beside Raiden’s still form. His hand came out and played with the ruffled sections of his clothing. It was obvious Shinnok did not like the idea of another disheveling the thunder god because he didn’t touch Raiden as Quan Chi had, instead his fingers came up to caress down his face, rubbing the edges of the god’s hood before rising back again.

Shinnok did nothing else but wait for Raiden to awaken.

A short flutter of eyelids announced Raiden’s consciousness. His irises flickered for but a moment when he shifted, groaning in the pains of renewed life whilst he attempted to sit himself up.

“Stay.” Shinnok’s hand now pressed against the exposed expanse of the god’s chest, effectively stifling Raiden’s attempt to sit upright. Though, as soon as Raiden fell back onto his elbows and his eyes focused on the Elder God pressed so close, it was only a matter of time before he recollected all previous events and reacted as expected of him.

“Shinnok!” Sparks jolted down Raiden’s arms. They singed the beautiful sheets below, but clenched fists and teeth didn’t care for what ruin would befall after, only the anger and the need to avenge said feeling. However, even with the threatening tone in Raiden's growl and the sparks flying down his arms Shinnok merely laughed.

"Though I savor every passionate cry involving my name, why don't we save that for later?" Once again Shinnok forced Raiden down, moving until he was halfway over the thunder god. "Reviving is a challenge in itself, even for a god. Recover your strength, Raiden, much will be asked of you in due time."

"Release me!" Raiden struggled beneath Shinnok. His legs kicked and his arms pushed. His bolts began to snap at anything, flying out and striking in random, though his attacks weren’t originally mindless. Raiden controlled his lightning very well and aimed every damaging effect it had toward the Elder God, but with each hurl Shinnok deflected the bolts, and thus destruction befell on everything else but him.

It was obvious Shinnok enjoyed the wrestle, though he had to do very little to keep Raiden within his grasp. As mighty as he came off, Raiden did just return from the dead. It would take him some time to recuperate from his still healing wounds.

Be that as it may, Quan Chi watched Earthrealm's lord fight to be free of Shinnok's eyes and hands. "Don't touch me!" Raiden bent his legs, aiming his knees to slam them into Shinnok's abdomen. They impacted perfectly, but aside from short grunts, the Elder God didn't move. "I am not your property!"

That was when Shinnok wrapped both hands around Raiden's neck. No more could the thunder god cry out, but the hold didn't cease his wiggling.

"Oh, but you are." Shinnok's voice lowered. "To the victor go the spoils and I. Am. Your. Conqueror." Each word punctuated as Shinnok tightened his grasp. Quan Chi believed he was going to snap Raiden's neck, but as soon as he made the god bleed he loosened his grasp. His voice even lost its previous dark undertones. "Come now, Raiden, even you should know the rules. All I ask for is respect." Leaning down, Shinnok laid a kiss against the god's jaw. "And submission."

Raiden jerked his head away, turning to glare up at Shinnok. There was so much hate in the way his eyes sparked. It wasn't a surprise when he broke an arm free and slammed the side of his fist against the Elder God's neck. The charge spread through it sizzled the edges of his robe, but left Shinnok's skin unmarred unfortunately.

Shinnok didn't let him get away with that strike. With a shift he caught hold of the free wrist and twisted the appendage until a crack echoed across the room. Then he slammed the twisted arm back into the sheets, leaning his weight further atop the struggling thunder god.

There might have been dark humor twinkling in Shinnok's gaze for a moment, but whatever it was hid away when he leaned down and kissed Raiden hard. He flinched back a moment later with a trickle of red dripping down his chin. Now his eyes shined with excitement.

Shinnok completely ignored the dangers of Raiden's electrified teeth and pressed his red lips over his again. He held him there like that, taking what he wanted. And Raiden resisted. He wiggled and shook even though he was caught, even though he was defeated.

Quan Chi loved the way he struggled. It’s what made Raiden beautiful. His independent spirit was certainly coveted—if only to take and tame.

Shinnok used his hold on Raiden's kicking legs and twisted him. Now he had him face down, his hips jutting against the lesser god’s backside while his other hand slid into opened robes. Shinnok toyed with Raiden's skin, raking nails down muscles and over nipples. This only infuriated Raiden more and he lit up with lightning.

Shinnok furrowed his brow at the way Raiden's lightning shot out in paths to destroy. The room began to fall apart. "Stop this, Raiden." His hand slid past binds and into the thunder god's pants. Quan Chi's breath caught when Shinnok grabbed a hold of Raiden's cock. "This is a nice room, and nice bed. I'd like to fuck you on it before you destroy it."

Raiden groaned into the sheets, but Quan Chi doubted it was from the hand sliding along him. Shinnok's weight did well to resist his struggles. Yet Raiden never really quit.

As Shinnok thrust against him, humming his pleasure and groping where he may, Raiden continued to spark, it was subtle, especially as his bolts collected toward a certain point. Quan Chi thought Shinnok would have noticed it, but when Raiden fell into a thrust, rolling with him, the intentionality caught Shinnok off guard and threw him off balance. It gave the thunder god enough time to twist himself and shoot the collected voltage his way.

The force shook Shinnok back. He flew against the wall. The space around him crumbled and shattered.

Raiden flew up. Even with a damaged arm he came at Shinnok with everything he had. One strike even marked across the Elder God's cheek, and he wasn't pleased with the fact.

Still healing, Raiden's minimal strength was his downfall. As sad as it was to see him fall, it was also exhilarating. Quan Chi stood on edge as he watched his master catch Raiden whilst he threw himself at him, twisting his aimed punch until his arm cramped behind his back. Shinnok then slammed his forehead against Raiden's.

Raiden wavered after the strike, but Shinnok wasn't finished. Letting go of his twisted arm he bent over and kicked the thunder god, slamming him down into the ground. A jab with his heel broke into his sternum and then another kick slammed into his throat and held him there.

Raiden was wheezing. His grit teeth pink with blood. Fiery eyes blazed up at Shinnok but his weakened body posed no threat any longer.

Amongst the gagging and the coughing, Raiden's hoarse voice was heard. "You won't . . . you won’t succeed."

Shinnok hummed, leaning down, purposely putting heavier pressure on his throat to see if Raiden could still find his voice. He did.

"The Elder Gods will find you, Shinnok! And they will stop you!"

Shinnok's grin worried both Quan Chi and Raiden. "Will they though? They certainly didn't stop me from raping you, and they won't stop me from doing it again."

Moving his foot away, Shinnok reached down and took a hold of Raiden. For a moment Quan Chi believed his master would offer another bout of gentle endearment, instead he twisted and slammed the thunder god into the wall. Stepping away, Shinnok didn't even bother catching Raiden as he crumbled to the floor, instead he circled his aching form and consistently struck him with his fist, his heel, and his elbow until Earthrealm’s god was pushed closer to death once more. In the end Shinnok avoided breaking his body. A glance toward the windows indeed turned his mind away from visions of murder.

"Dawn already." Shinnok looked back at Raiden. Reaching down he took him by the collar of his robe and tugged. "We best be off then. Can't be late for the ceremony."

Quan Chi moved away from the room and kept out of sight to cause no ire with his master. He was present down below in the hall where the shackled gods were taken and knelt. Cetrion was there, seated in a throne of flora. She looked beautiful amongst the ruined temple interior, and expectant.

Her eyes fell on Shinnok when he appeared, as did everyone else's. He came into the room dragging Raiden and as soon as he tossed him to the ground the thunder god's brothers began to quake with fury.

"Vile traitor!"

“Usurper!”

"All praise and honor be redacted from your name!"

"You will face judgment for your treachery!" That was Fujin. He trembled in the enchanted shackles, his hair fluttering as his very being pulled at what power he could push against the spells cast upon him.

"Those statements are quite rude to make toward your lord." Shinnok paid the four a simple glance.

Fujin's eyes widened with rage. " _Lord_? Your titles you give to yourself. I will not honor them!"

The other three elementals shouted in concordance. Their hate and despise seeped out of them, and their eyes . . . if looks could kill . . .

"Your honor is misplaced." Shinnok glanced down at Raiden. Though wounded he kept most pained sounds to himself. Always putting up a front before everyone, especially his brothers. "There is none for the defeated. You bow to me now."

"I'd rather spend an eternity in the pits of Netherrealm." Fujin spat toward Shinnok. His statement made the Elder God turn back toward him and his brothers.

When Shinnok came closer he knelt himself over Fujin, ignoring the protective shuffling from the gods beside him. Reaching out, he touched the wind god. Fujin had very soft locks of ivory, Shinnok could feel it best when he gripped it as hard as he could. Even still, Fujin refused to show any discomfort. Chest out and chin up, he glared back at the Elder God just like his older brother.

"If there be no honor in you then let me impart you with it myself and grant you that wish. Besides . . ." Fujin flinched back when Shinnok ran his knuckles down his handsome face. "This war’s ravaged my oni forces, weighing mounts of stress on those remaining. You'd do them good.”

The temperature heightened. Shinnok turned his gaze to Fujin's left where his fiery brother knelt. He was shaking, the air around him rippling.

"You bastard!"

Shinnok frowned at the disrespectful words, but still found it in himself to say, "Don't you fret, you'll get your share too."

Had not the sorcerers been there, the fire god might have broken free from his bonds. The moment he showed close signs they summoned spells and began to drain his very essence. He shook, his fires shrinking and his heat falling away. His agony distressed his brethren, but knelt beside him even they were unable to do anything. How marvelous and terrifying that was all at once.

“Lady Cetrion!” It was the water god Suiten who made his plea. He twisted, his wispy eyes bore straight where the Elder Goddess remained seated and silent. She at least offered him her gaze. “Will you do nothing against this atrocity? You sit in witness of this wrong and yet you sit in silence. Lady Cetrion, help us!”

The way she looked at the helpless deities made Quan Chi wondered if she would answer their calls. She was a gentle goddess, one of light. The dark deeds that her brother has done could never mar her image, yet she sat there unmoved, as if she cut off her emotions to those ascending her prayers.

“I cannot correct what has already been done.” Cetrion shook her head. She looked toward Shinnok and then looked at Raiden. “Earthrealm is no longer Raiden’s dominion. Shinnok has accomplished that in an act of dominance even before this invasion. This current ruination only validates his right.”

The gods looked lost. Hopelessness began to sink in, especially as another Elder God confirmed their fears.

“And should any soul present need proof of my claim then I will gladly show it.” Eyes fell back toward Shinnok. His smile was devious, especially when he reached down and took hold of Raiden. He pulled him close and the instant he had eyes widened in realization.

“No!” Fujin and the others trembled, shaking away from their constrainers. At least they were trying to.

Once again Quan Chi was in the very same room as Shinnok tore Raiden’s garments to shreds. As wounded as the thunder god was from his earlier beating he resisted Shinnok’s touches. Legs kicked and arms pushed while the Elder God squeezed him and pulled him back each time he crawled away.

“Please!” Fujin leaned forward, grief in his voice and distress in his features. “Please don’t do this! Not again, please! Please!”

In the ruins of a once great hall surrounded with tarnished tributes once full of worth and the decaying bodies of devout worshipers Shinnok raped Raiden. And it was amongst waves of ravenous oni growling in pleasure, his chained brothers in tears calling out his name, and an Elder God whose beautiful eyes showed no shame in watching it all.

Shinnok had Raiden face down, pushing him into the dust covered floor while he wound his arm around his waist, pulling him against his hips that rocked and jutted until he was so deep inside him it hurt. Raiden was brave in keeping the pain to himself, but Quan Chi doubted the physical pain was what hurt the thunder god the most. It was the loss of his temple, the loss of his worshippers, the loss of his brethren, the loss of his realm that damaged him and seeing him come undone and shatter was simply glorious.

Quan Chi’s breath quivered out of him. Sensations coursed through as he witnessed his master defile the thunder god again. Shinnok looked more than pleased to have Raiden in his arms and his cock buried deep inside him. The way his hands groped him made Quan Chi envision his own in their stead, running down exposed skin, over bruised ribs and abused nipples. Quan Chi would have grasped Raiden’s cock just like Shinnok did, with possessive strength and quick slides.

Raiden shook, grunting. His face contorted, a mixture between existing pain and recurring grief. His eyes were clenched shut, and possibly his ears to the sight and sounds of his brothers. Even in Raiden’s shameful predicament his brethren looked more devastated. Watching their eldest be dominated by another would no doubt haunt them forever.

The shudder of his body signaled Shinnok’s end, yet he did not separate himself. No, he held Raiden close and rocked against him, intent to carry out his pulsing pleasure. And when he stilled he leaned over the god, gasping along with Raiden’s shaking form and smiling against the skin of his shoulders.

“Get out.”

Shinnok might not have looked, but Quan Chi did to see Fujin’s tear-streaked furious face. He was trembling, his fists clenched and teeth grinding.

“You’ve done what you wanted now get out of him!” The air around moved, stirring wariness in the surrounding oni and fury in his brothers. “Get out and leave him, you wretched beast!”

Shinnok huffed, leaning back but not releasing his hold on the thunder god. Jaw clenching and eyes glaring, the Elder God looked toward Fujin and the other gods with animosity. 

“Sew that one’s mouth shut and have the sorcerers deplete them. After that give what’s left to the soldiers.” Shinnok didn’t bother looking at the gods again even as his sorcerers surrounded them and used their dark magic to drain their resisting souls.

It was wonderful; draining a god of their essence. Quan Chi reveled in their energies and so did his fellow sorcerers. It made them tremble in delightful ways, spurring them to drain more and more and more and MORE.

And the gods’ cries . . .

Quan Chi and his brethren have never heard the divine cry out in pain. Only another god could inflict enough damage on another to cause any serious grief to their physical forms, yet there Quan Chi was, powerful enough to make them scream. They fell and writhed, their skin wrinkling and losing its vibrancy.

No order to stop was given, and when Quan Chi looked over toward Shinnok he watched his master stand and fix his clothing. He looked away from them as if he didn’t care what they did, so the oni continued. They might have even killed the elemental gods prematurely hadn’t Quan Chi felt the searing of white-hot pain pierce his chest. It sent him flying, tumbling into his brethren with wide eyes and mouth open with screams.

The center of his chest burned, smoke rising from charred flesh. The suddenness of it all had startled faces turning toward Raiden. He was on his hands and knees, his clothing in tatters; an image of one completely abused. But the way his arm stretched, hand forward with twitching, sparking fingers confirmed his involvement in the attack.

Instead of retaliation, the shocked oni trembled away, looking to their master to put a muzzle on the thunder god. Shinnok stood there with a hint of amusement, especially at the way the weakened brothers reached for one another as if they sought the others’ comfort and protection.

“Cowards.” Shinnok sneered at the oni. His face shifted entirely when he looked back at Raiden. With a gesture of his hand, the Elder God motioned his underlings closer. “Take him back to the room. I’m nowhere done with him.” When the command wasn’t followed Shinnok glared. “You fear him? You’ll learn to fear me if you don’t do as I say.”

The threat and the way Shinnok made the room shake moved the oni to do as they were told. Unsure hands took hold of the thunder god, pulling him up on wobbling legs. He was heavy in their grasp, and the electricity crackling across his skin faded as soon as he slumped over. Heavy eyes flickered, glazing over as he was taken away from his brothers and further into the confines of Shinnok’s possession.

Quan Chi was tending to himself when he saw Shinnok move out of the room, trailing behind the oni dragging Raiden away. He walked tall and accomplished, despite his dark deeds he never once lost his divine air—maybe that’s what Quan Chi admired and hated about him. He despised gods, but he knew his place amongst them and from there he could see the way they struck back at each other, the way they tormented their betters, their lessers. Quan Chi saw the way Shinnok looked over his shoulder toward Cetrion and the way she smiled at him in the most encouraging of ways.

From where Quan Chi stood he saw that even the divine could become nothing but a play thing to another. The only souls safe in the hierarchy of the universe were the wretches like himself. He was expendable enough to stand in places unseen and see everything.

Like the sudden shift in the air, as if the realm itself was reacting to what had been done in daylight. This strange phenomenon moving through the atmosphere began catching everyone’s attention. The power behind it was more than the degrees of the realm. It was heavenly in nature, Quan Chi could feel it. The essence he absorbed from the elemental gods made him acutely aware of these paranormal changes and that it was happening so fast alarmed him and the other sorcerers who had also inhaled the godly energies.

Wide black eyes looked over toward Cetrion. She was looking upward, as if she could hear something, see someone. Then she looked away, she looked toward him and Quan Chi knew.

The Elder Gods had seen all that had happened and now they called for an audience, and likely a trial.


	3. Part 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes part threeeeee!
> 
> WARNINGS: Rape. More incest. Some just deserts. Some not-so-just deserts. Manipulation. Elder God beatdown. Tumble in the Heavens. Tentacle Porn (I guess). Godly cannibalism. Character Deaths. Dub-con. Lotsa dubious situations. This chapter being loooong. Likely grammatical mistakes (have mercy on me!). Author making shit up, it's gonna happen.

What Cetrion admired most about her brother's power was the way he used it. Where they—as Elder Gods—held the reverence of the entire universe, they too often remained outside the means of life within for the sake of indignation, but not Shinnok. Beside her own benevolence and reservations he stood as an enactor and enabler, moving into realms every so often to plant seeds of his influence and distribute wisdom. These actions often garnered him a heavily devout sect of worshippers of which continued to multiply the more Shinnok involved himself.

This uncommon attentiveness amongst their ranks was no doubt a part of his ever persistent schemes. Shinnok had always been cunning, his mind wide and deep with boundless knowledge. He was never afraid to reach into the darkest parts of cognitive consciousness to formulate the lays in his mind, and it was this genius Cetrion and even the others often looked to for answers to all of the confounded.

As dark as the things were that Shinnok had secretly dwelled on, it was also Shinnok who conjured the schematics for the kamidogu when they stood against the One Being, and he who taught them how to challenge their tyrannical adversary. Because of these feats he's been praised in the realms and in the heavens, especially by Cetrion herself.

Aside from his mind, His strength held no bounds in any form he retained. Moving into the realms forced physicality upon them, a means of restraint the universe ensured to keep in place. But even in such limited space Shinnok managed to maintain his might, and he’s conquered two great realms because of this.

As controversial as these current deeds were, Cetrion battled with the shame and disappointment inside her over her brother’s actions. Her marvel at the layout of them all and how well they moved in the motion of Shinnok's will astounded her yet again. Their sudden success against the obvious odds and unmoving factors turned Cetrion into no other position than praise; praise for Shinnok's foresight, for his patience, for his devotion, for his influence, and for his resolve.

Being there, watching everything Shinnok had set forth fall into perfect place made Cetrion honor him with more commendation, especially in regards to his power. With his humility and reservations cast aside, her brother became a frightening cosmic force and it stirred her toward him.

She wanted to bask in his accomplishments even if they opposed her virtue. She wanted to fight that power, to stand against it just to feel the thrill of its challenge. Yet in the same sense she wanted to submit to it, to him, and feel him dominate her just as he had worlds. These visions of conflict would have to wait at least until she stopped her marvel of his sheer beauty in his victories.

Shinnok was a vision in his plunder. He let the pull of greed guide him until he fought against the rising shame and defeated it in order to indulge in uncensored satisfaction. It was unbefitting of an Elder God to move so easily in their emotions because they had a role to play, but when he threw off those prudent robes and lavished himself because he could he became a breathtaking image.

The room Cetrion sat herself in was small, at least compared to her quarters up in Heaven. Though painted with expensive pigments and lined with gold and trims of excellent craftsmanship, the room still had suffered the consequences of the invasion. The oni did what they could to excuse it as presentable, but its severe lack distracted Cetrion enough to move her to line the area with beautiful ferns and blossoms. It calmed her heart enough and pulled her into a vision of a grander place where greenery cascaded, silks hung with more finery and pools brought light in every corner, littered with gems and precious metals. The furnish therein would be timeless relics, often cherished and often used. And the bed in the center would be just big enough for all three of them.

Her heart raced at the thought of it all, more so when she heard a quaking moan echo into the room. Green eyes brightened and lips curled while she watched her brother shudder in ecstasy. Cetrion felt herself ache at the way Shinnok moved and devoured every pleasure presented before him. His boldness to just take and take left her breathless, and the warmth throbbing between her thighs heated more so at the way the thunder god beneath Shinnok shook.

Charged hands clenched the silken sheets mangled around them. Raiden glistened with sweat and the spittle Shinnok coated him with. His powerful body was riddled with bruises and marks both from Shinnok’s teeth and his grasping hands, curling fingers, dragging nails. He lay splayed, forced open, spread for the Elder God as he moved against him, moved inside him.

For a moment, Cetrion let disappointment push aside her observational pleasure. Said disappointment only surged over the fact that this wasn’t Shinnok and Raiden’s first entanglement. Cetrion had unfortunately missed that event, but she knew it had been just as glorious as it was right now.

She envied Raiden, a heavy desire wishing to take his place and feel Shinnok come over her and take her for as many times as he wanted. And then her envy turned toward Shinnok. Her desire peaked to touch the thunder god again and to merge bodies until she didn't know where she began and Raiden ended. This rising need made her tremble as she sat there, watching her brother fuck Raiden. And she was a moment away from casting away her inhibitions and falling into that passion when she noticed how her brother shook his head.

He was hunched over, pressed up against Raiden, nestled between his thighs. He had just rode out another orgasm when he began to twitch and shift away. Cetrion knew something was wrong the moment Shinnok pulled himself away and out of the ravished god.

"Shinnok?" Cetrion moved away from where she sat, approaching her brother to lay her hands on his bare shoulders.

"At ease, sister. It is only an irritation." Shinnok grumbled, shaking his head again while rubbing along his forehead.

Moving her palms down her Shinnok’s face, Cetrion realized what ailed him.

"They call for you." It really had only been a matter of time. Cetrion felt the other Elder Gods' eyes looming the moment Shinnok had crossed realms with his Netherrealm hordes. She felt their growing disapproval when Shinnok's forces decimated Earthrealm. And she felt their fury when Shinnok raped Raiden before everyone.

The demand for a summon came immediately, though it was ignored. Refusing an Elder God was punishable by death, but Shinnok was one himself and drew out the call for as long as he could. Now he was having trouble refusing.

Cetrion felt her heart drop as she watched her brother sway, shaking his head as if trying to alleviate the pains he was being wrought with by their brethren. She had known, as he had, that this triumph wouldn't last long yet Shinnok insisted, persisted, prolonged his travel to Heaven just to keep Raiden in his arms.

Reaching down, Cetrion laid her hands on her brother's pale arms. Her touch brought relief to the irritation plaguing him. It also turned him toward her.

"What will you say?" Cetrion couldn't find it in herself to look at Shinnok. Knowing he would vanish from her soon enough made her reluctant to steal the last image of him she'd see. So she focused her gaze on the path of her rubbing fingers. They fell down forearms, running along wrists before sliding back up and passing over biceps. "What will you do?"

There will be a trial. Cetrion was certain of it. What Shinnok did was ambitious, yet it stood against the laws already set in place. The consequences of these crimes were damning, but Shinnok was an Elder God therefore this judgement would run differently, and that's what frightened Cetrion the most.

Cetrion heard her brother sigh. Even though she didn't want to she was looked up at Shinnok. Her mouth twitched with short relief in that his features weren't twisted in agony at the moment, her assistance alleviated the pains he was suffering from. But her uplifted spirit fell quickly afterward when she understood their moment together would be passing soon.

"It pains me to see you like this." Shinnok leaned forward, his forehead touching Cetrion's. "Have faith in me, sister, I have not been sentenced yet."

Grief finally rose inside Cetrion as Shinnok pulled away, tasking himself with redressing in preparation to return to the heavenly courts. Cetrion could do nothing more but watch him. There were no words of encouragement she could depart him with because she couldn't find them in herself. Instead, it was Shinnok who shrugged off every negativity thrust upon him and held his head high, another thing Cetrion always admired about her brother.

As soon as he was presentable Shinnok turned toward Cetrion and held out his arms. She immediately threw herself into his embrace and held herself against him for as long as she could. When she felt him twitch and shake his head she looked up and saw his pains returned.

Cetrion rose her hand and laid her palm against his jaw to offer relief but Shinnok turned away, instead taking her hand in his and pressing a kiss against her knuckles. "You will wait for me?"

Cetrion blinked back the sting in her eyes. "Always."

Shinnok hid the knowing devastation awaiting him very well. His kisses along her hand distracted Cetrion enough to forget about it for a time. As did the kiss he left her with across her lips. When he pulled away it felt as if a piece of Cetrion's soul was taken from her, and she watched him with a quivering form.

Shinnok smiled for her, moving even toward the bed where Raiden lay. As soon as he leaned over the god, Raiden immediately tried to shift away. Shinnok simply reached out and took the thunder god by his arms, pulling him back to depart him with a kiss as well.

Shinnok's smile widened when he let Raiden go. One last glance toward Cetrion was all he offered before he passed himself from Earthrealm and into the heavens.

Her grief took over her then. Cetrion fell back into her rising flora. She shook out her sadness and lost herself in all of the possibilities that were going to befall her brother.

Her aching heart ruled all of her senses. She hadn't even noticed how Raiden attempted to leave the bed.

Moist eyes blinked. She finally looked at the thunder god. His body quivered from the pains and stress forced on him. His ivory locks covered his eyes, though not enough to hide their glint nor their flicker.

The discoloration of his skin painted the expanse of his form, bruises and bites planted along the glowing lines of a dragon curled up the god’s back and around his shoulders. Dried blood clung to his cracked lips and nostrils. Cetrion even smelled traces of it in the mess between his thighs. Her brother had not been kind in his passion with the god, but Raiden would not perish from it. He would heal in time.

The moment Raiden failed to hold back a pained groan, Cetrion’s heart turned to him. Coming beside him, she held out her hands, both willing to rejuvenate him and offer him relief from his aches, but just as he had done to Shinnok; Raiden shifted away.

"Stay your shame, Raiden, I offer you relief." Cetrion showed her palms, both glowing with a soft warm violet.

White eyes looked back at her. There was enmity in them—the first time any soul has looked at Cetrion with such an emotions—but out of all the ones swirling in Raiden's beautiful eyes despair was the most visible. It moved Cetrion.

Pulling her hands away, Cetrion stayed herself in respect to the unspoken wishes of the god. "Your troubles are misplaced." Her eyes looked down at her hands where they rested against her thighs. They were soft hands, gentle, and always willing to offer nourishment. No one's ever rejected them before. It felt wrong. Raiden made her feel like an enemy.

Green irises finally looked back up. "Your realm has not been destroyed. Your brothers live as do a margin of the native life here."

"And I should take solace in that?"

Cetrion blinked. Raiden hadn't spoken since his defeat. Even now his words were hoarse, his gaze away, looking at something only he could see.

Taking his cognitive response as a positive aspect, Cetrion leaned forward. She placed a hand atop the bed and as soon as she had though glazed eyes focused on the point of her contact. Cetrion didn't move any closer.

"There has to be reformation before paradise is unraveled." It was obvious, yet Cetrion found it frustrating that Raiden couldn't comprehend that.

When his eyes looked at her the anguish was pushed aside to show her his livid hate. "I've tasted your paradise and want none of it."

Cetrion sighed. Though she knew she shouldn't, she leaned forward to lay her hand over Raiden's. She wanted to offer comfort and assurance that the grief would fall away to bliss. Shinnok had showed her this, had helped her understand. She may not have much sway with her words, but she could offer her heart. However, the very second she brushed her fingers against his the thunder god sparked, zapping her palm and jerking his arm away.

"Don't touch me!" Raiden turned away from her, once again rejecting from this offered blessing. His eyes, though filled with so much spite wouldn’t even turn to her. Once again Cetrion felt herself crumble.

She could have forced Raiden to comply. Cetrion could be like her brother and embrace such bold attitudes, but she was hesitant without his presence. So she pulled away and pitied herself, wandering the dark halls of the damaged temple.

She would have remained in her dismay hadn't a passing oni suddenly cried out in pain. Her wide eyes watched the thing crumble and then vanish altogether into a wisp of ethereal flames.

The spontaneity of it all pulled Cetrion to investigate. She passed through the halls and finally came to a balcony where she looked down at the camped forces at the base of the damaged temple. It was there she caught rising sounds, cries, all coming from the numbers below.

Cetrion watched as they scrambled, as they tumbled over each other as if trying to run away from what was happening to each of them. But they couldn't escape the inevitable. They were disappearing.

The sounds of cries were closer now. Cetrion twisted when a group of hooded oni ran toward her. She recognized the one known as Quan Chi, his eyes wide and hysterical.

"Lady Cetrion!" He immediately fell to his knees, as did he brethren. "You must save us!"

"What manner of attack is this?" Cetrion's confusion heightened when one of the oni before her suddenly caught flames, frightening the others just before he vanished into nothing.

"This is divine retribution!" Quan Chi once more looked up at Cetrion for relief. "It's the Elder Gods. They mean to destroy us all for what we've done. Please, Lady Cetrion, do not forsake us! Honor our loyalty!"

Cetrion couldn't have done anything even if she tried. The oni sorcerer was right. These disappearances were outside this realm. And only a select few had the power to vanish an entire species.

Her breath caught the moment every oni before her faded away. Quan Chi could only let out a cry as he burned into nothingness. For a moment, in the silence, Cetrion believed she would fall to the same fate, but she remained in the expanse of the desolate hall.

Her heart hammered, much too loud now in the quiet around her. She returned to the balcony and heard no more cries. All was calm.

Earthrealm was void of the oni.

"Brother." Cetrion realized what was happening. Shinnok was falling into sentence as was any force associated with him. This spurred the goddess to abandon Earthrealm entirely and move into the heavens as fast as she could.

The gates opened for her and celestial servants parted upon her approach. She didn't stop until she made it into the courts where every other Elder God stood, surrounding Shinnok in judgement.

"What have you done?" Cetrion pushed herself into the circle, but instead of sending fervent glares toward Shinnok, instead her eyes looked at the other four. "What has been said?"

The other Elder Gods looked at her. There was a slight bout of surprise by her arrival but it vanished a moment later. Instead they squared their shoulders and lifted their chins. Their eyes turned back toward the one seated in judgement.

"Have you come to join a seat beside us as jurors or one along with the accused, Cetrion?"

Cetrion straightened. "This summons has hardened your hearts and misaligned your logic. You now accuse _me_ of crimes? You shame yourselves for compromising to your emotions. Here you stand with no proof of your bold claims over me or Shinnok.”

A snicker toward her right had Cetrion glaring at the Elder God standing there. "What further proof do we need? We have seen it with our very eyes. As we have seen you standing as but a spectator to these atrocities."

“Given only that I was present in the realm, my role was no different than yours seated up here. What else do I stand in fault of?” Cetrion’s words halted her fellows’ judgement over her. In their retaliation they moved themselves against the one at better fault.

Eyes narrowed back toward Shinnok who stood undaunted under their heated scrutiny. "He has broken sacred law and stands here before us denying it."

Cetrion's gleaming gaze finally looked toward her brother. She hated seeing him in such a position, but even with such mounting atrocities weighing against him he held himself proper. There wasn't a trace of fear in him.

The blatant comment made Shinnok shift. A twitch of his lips had a scowl forming. "I upheld the laws; I have defeated both protectors of Netherrealm and Earthrealm, by right I am their sole ruler."

"It is not the duty of an Elder God to rule over realms. We have no right to aspire for such conquests. Our place is here, seated in reservation with watching eyes, never leaning to interfere in the business of the realms.

Shinnok huffed. "Then cease your interference in mine." The sneers he got brought out an enjoying smile. "I came into existence as an Elder God. You ask that I cast off my very essence to justify the way you see the laws. It's not that simple."

"No. It's not. And you knew this, Shinnok."

Cetrion knew that Shinnok would not willingly give up what he’s gained. The others demanded that he lose his status among their ranks. But how could one go about stripping an Elder God of his divinity when he has always been?

It was that confusion that pulled the other Elder Gods into frustrated grief.

"Why have you done this? What ire turned you so crooked that you would willingly step out of Heaven?" Remorse rose in their voices. Despite what he'd done, he was still their brother. The one who's been with them all since time began. To think of a day where Shinnok was not seated beside them was a dreadful imagery, one that frightened Cetrion the most.

"Your ambitions are too dangerous, Shinnok. Should we let it go unmonitored then we chance atrophy."

"You all seem to think I have no control over my actions. I am not possessed or sick of mind. I have maintained my seat here for millenniums. Accusing me of ill governing is out of your line. That you would hint such things insults me." As dangerous as the others claimed of him, Shinnok stood before them harmless. He honored their demands when he was called—he bided his time, but he came nonetheless—and he laid bare before them, no threats, no acts of power. This commonality threw the other Elder Gods off, all of it reminiscent of a time when it was just the six of them, always. Yet Shinnok’s current actions tugged their righteous ideals against him.

"We know the workings of your mind; that is why we stand here in worry. What you have done will not be easily reverted."

“So that is my sentence?” Shinnok huffed again. He looked displeased, but his eyes danced in the dark light of mirth. “You aim to take all of my accomplishments from me? Then what? Who’s to say I won’t do it again? Would you all actively rise up against me that time or will you sit here, as comfortable as you always are, letting things slip by because you could care less? If that is all it takes then I ask you look away from my actions and let me have my fun.”

His words aggravated those he intended to aggravate. Shinnok didn’t even bother to hide the way his lips curled at their reactions. And it was his expression that infuriated them more.

“You are not above us, Shinnok!”

“But I am above the realms.” Shinnok’s face fell. His eyes were hard, lit with a fire, the one that likely spurred him to do what he did. “I see nothing wrong with asserting my status and ensuring that the lesser deities and mortals alike remember it.”

“You have done more than reveal your divinity to the ignorant.” Their faces looked troubled, as did Cetrion’s. She held herself quiet whilst they sifted through their thoughts and their disturbances.

“Then what must be done?” Cetrion looked at the other four. They were confounded on this issue. Even if she wanted to actively stand against her brother on this she wouldn’t know quite what to do.

Of course this quandary was all Shinnok’s design.

However with Cetrion’s presence, the other Elder Gods left everything in a suspended state. It was good for the likes of Earthrealm. Its ravaged plains were given a chance to recuperate and its decimated populace time to piece what they could back together.

The oni had been vanquished from the lands and left in their home world. Netherrealm was in no better condition than Earthrealm. The natives fought each other the moment they went returned and they continued this struggle even now that no clear governance remained.

Yet what’s been done has been done. Netherrealm and even Earthrealm called for its master. Their energies reached for Shinnok and when they couldn’t touch him due to the Elder Gods’ barriers their essences sang out to them in complaint, threatening to teeter if he wasn’t returned. That was the troubles the Elder Gods were dealing with, and the solution was not easily found.

The trial of an Elder God was not often looked over. As much disarray the other realms were in, many turned their attentions away from their ongoing madness to witness this event. The heavens gathered with various spectators until it was overflowing. All of the divine were called upon to bear witness, all of them.

* * *

Along with the disappearance of the oni was the same of their enchantments. The moment the shackled deities were able to break free they did so with invigorated fury. Their weakened state from the soul sorcerers was ignored as they spread and ran throughout their realm in search for these invasive enemies. They never found one to relieve their frustrations on, instead they found desolation and decimation. And now they wound themselves back in order to aid the ravaged.

The stillness and quiet brought a shallow relief, but Earthrealm and its occupants weren’t allowed to bask in it for long. The heavens summoned an audience. An Elder God was going on trial.

Even before Fujin entered the room, Raiden knew the words on his heart. His eyes watched his brother push the door open with his shoulder, his hands holding a tray of clean gauze and a bowl of fresh water. He was quiet when he was fully inside, as if intending to mind his own and assist his brother as he had been doing for the past few days.

Raiden let him, keeping his own peace in the silence while Fujin stripped him of the binds wound around him. He felt his eyes on him and hated the way they stared at the discolorations across his skin. And he said nothing when Fujin ran his gentle hands down his spine and across his ribs where bones finally mended. Raiden gave his brother the opportunity to feel him and know he persisted, they all did.

The clank of plates and drip of water echoed in the room. It was loud, and the noise bounced off ugly crumbled walls stripped of hue and any beauty it once retained. One wall fell away in a corner, the light outside shining in along with the hum of the rising heat of day. While not ideal to recover in, Raiden felt it a better room than the one Shinnok insisted on keeping him in.

“The Elder Gods call for us.” Fujin’s soft voice broke through the quiet. Raiden knew, and he knew that Fujin understood that. But someone had to speak. “Shinnok’s going on trial for all he did.”

Another silence passed between them whilst Fujin worked. Leaving Raiden to mend on his own was a process none of them enjoyed, but Raiden insisted on resisting the healing properties of the jinsei. After it failed him during the attack, he didn’t have much more faith in it any longer. His brothers never dejected him over this decision even if they stood in disagreement. Instead they remained by his side, as they always have.

“I wish they would grant us some more time.” Fujin tugged on a part of the gauze. He was wrapping it now around Raiden’s arm. “I’d rather not leave Earthrealm in the state it’s in.”

Raiden bent his head, sucking in a breath when Fujin pulled the gauze over his shoulder. It had just relocated. Fujin slide to his side, leaning forward to observe his face for any more signs of pain. With him that close, Raiden took the time to reach out and take hold of his hand. He squeezed.

“I’m glad it wasn’t you.” Raiden felt Fujin’s hand tighten against his own hold. His brother was shaking. “I’m glad it wasn’t any of you.”

Fujin pulled away a moment later. He stood, his face scrunched in rage. His entire body shook with a similar emotion.

“Well I’m not!” His voice trembled. Those eyes of his glared into Raiden, but not at him. “It’s not right; the shame he’s caused you. You can’t say . . .” Fujin looked away, shaking his head. He blinked to fight back the rising fury, but to Raiden it was good to see him so worked up, with the vibrancy of life returned. “I wish you to stay. I don’t want you anywhere near him, so I request we go in your stead.” Fujin turned to Raiden again, kneeling down. He was gentle when he reached out to touch him, but also cautious.

Raiden understood why Fujin wished these things. A part of him wished the same. “They have summoned all of us, Fujin. None more should anyone else be present there than us, all of us.”

There was reluctance in Fujin’s eyes. He leaned away, head bowed. Raiden knew why.

“After everything that’s happened I . . . have this fear that he’ll do it again.” Fujin looked helpless with grief when he looked back at his brother. “I can’t, Raiden, I can’t watch him take you again. I won’t.”

Raiden let out a breath. He closed his eyes to find peace in the silence, but the subtle throb along his body reminded him of what had been done—and what had been taken. Eyes opened, he looked toward Fujin. Seeing his brother like this reminded him of the first time he came upon him: down in the chamber where the jinsei lay. Raiden couldn’t stand the distraught pushed upon his brothers. He worked so hard to recover from that tragedy and grow in strength, but it hadn’t been enough. And there Fujin was, staring at him with the same distress he had harbored before. 

Blinking away, Raiden shifted on his stronger arm. “We must trust the other Elder Gods to keep him restrained.”

“I have no faith in them!” Raiden’s wide eyes turned back to Fujin. All of the unfortunate that befell them had hardened him. Even to the point of blasphemy. “Where were they when they let Shinnok run over Earthrealm? Where were they when they let him take the jinsei? When they let him take . . .” Fujin huffed, face reddening and nostrils flaring. “They let him do so much, Raiden. So much.”

Raiden allowed another quiet to fall between them so that it would let Fujin cool himself. It helped them both even as Raiden said, “Whatever reasons for their previous inactions, the Elder Gods will put an end to his rampage. It was only a matter of time.”

“So much has happened in that time.” Fujin swallowed. Teeth grit as bitter sadness washed over him. “How can we even take back what’s been done to us? To you? How can the Elder Gods give us reparation for that?”

Fujin was close enough for Raiden to reach out and take hold of his hand again. The god of wind was still trembling, still so full of sadness. None of it was for himself, but for his brother and all the things that had been wrongly done to him.

Fujin’s wishes were similar to their brothers’. Hearing that Raiden was going to attend the trial pushed them into a frantic frenzy. They’ve never stood against their eldest brother before but they did that day. It was of no use though, Raiden donned himself in blues and silvers, walking out of the damaged temple on strong legs.

He stood there just at the base, with his brothers standing before him. Hesitance washed their features. There were looks passed between the four, each questioning whether they should carry on their defiance and whether it would benefit Raiden or bring further harm to his fractured soul. This indecision allowed the thunder god to pass them without resistance.

Looking back at his brethren, Raiden found relief in their company. They were all there with him, standing, unbound, their energies rejuvenated. They dressed accordingly for their destination, each a vision of divine pride. It was the way Raiden wanted them kept, and if his soul had to suffer the traumas of the universe to maintain that for them then he would bear that burden.

Turning, Raiden looked at Fujin. The wind god stood closest to him, his hat in his hands. Even from there Raiden could see his fingers curling around the brim in a telltale sign of reluctance. Still, Raiden held out his hand for it.

One more round of looks were shared before Fujin relented the hat. As soon as Raiden had it in his hands he situated it atop his head and then looked up at the skies above. Raising his arms he brought them all from the realm and into the heavens.

For the first time in eternity Heaven was crowded. Every deity from every realm stood present, mingling amongst each other with curious words and condescending topics. Raiden and his brethren came into these masses barely able to move. Though their arrival turned heads and eyes. A quiet began to settle around them as questioning auras brushed against them a familiar voice rose.

“Raiden! Raiden!”

A god pushed himself out from between the crowds and the moment he was free from their clogged forms he approached the five Earthrealmers. It was Argus, protector god of Edenia. Of course he’d be the one to approach them first.

“I heard what happened.” His face began to fall, his eyes looking over each one of them. When they fell on Raiden his gaze slowed as if he was looking for any indication of ailment. Perhaps he too felt the way Raiden’s soul clung together, slipping and then rising again, trying its hardest not to fall to pieces.

“What all did you hear?” There was a pitch of something akin to hostility in Fujin’s voice. Raiden turned to give him a halting look before turning back toward Argus. The god looked understanding, his trouble rising to match their own.

“The madness is abominable.” Argus sighed. “What’s been done to your realm is horrific. I can’t imagine what you all had to endure during such a reign of terror.” With a shake of his head, Argus tried to offer some form of comfort for the five deities, notably by means of a smile. He shifted, reaching forward to offer a hand in comradery. “But I’m grateful to see you all standing here today.” His touch made Raiden flinch away and his brethren step forward. Argus looked confused by the repulsion for a moment before he respectfully stepped back and created an easier distance. He even opted to bow. “My sincerest apologies. I stood here too eager for companionship when I remained too ignorant of lasting wounds.”

“You’re all still alive?” The deep rumbling voice turned all six deities toward the looming figure approaching them. Bright amber eyes peered down at them with more curiosity than sympathy. It was just how Outworld’s protector god was. “Being attacked by an Elder God; I expected a little more catastrophe, most notably in fatalities.”

“Have some respect, Shao.” Argus stood at their defense, his chest puffing and chin tilted. “For the sake of the tragedy that’s befallen them and their realm.”

Shao’s brow rose. There was a light in his eyes more related to intrigue than any form of submission to Argus’ wishes. “It certainly was an unusual fate that turned toward Earthrealm.” He looked at the gods. Obvious displeasure of their presence. Yet when his eyes roamed over Raiden, his stared burned into him the most. “But I must wonder how you all came out unscathed. I am dying to know.”

Raiden narrowed his own gaze in returned. Tight-lipped and curled tongue, Raiden turned away to continue his path toward the court. His brothers pushed close behind him, keeping their silence in respect. But that didn’t stop eyes from looking and minds from wandering. Lips muttered scenarios, situations both far and close to the truth of just how they survived.

The masses split, watching Raiden and his brothers pass with quiet whispers. Their eyes gravitated toward the deities of Earthrealm as did their remainder. The crowds closed in behind Raiden as he approached the courts where vacant space was the hardest to find.

Raiden didn’t have to say a word for the others to turn their attention toward him and his brothers. Their essences were riddled with the energies of Earthrealm, and its mere scent pulled the other deities present toward them. They formed a distance in silent respect but leaned close from their ever present curiosity. Everyone wanted to know the full extent of what had happened. And as the trial began and unwound, they would soon enough.

Finding a place along the bordered railing, Raiden and his brothers peered out into the circle of tall thrones. There, standing in the center was Shinnok. Unbound and unmolested he stood tall in fine robes, his head held high in some warped sense of pride. Raiden felt his soul stir at the sight, his hands clutching the railing. The mere sight of him so unhinged disturbed him and this disturbance passed through his brothers just behind him.

Raiden could feel energies rippling near him. Fires licked, waters swirled around ligaments, winds brushed just hard enough to tease threats. His brothers perceived the unshackled Elder God in the same sense he was. But it was Raiden standing as the only one who could restrain their fury—as well as his own.

Lifting a hand, Raiden curled his fingers. “Remember where you are. This is Heaven, respect yourselves as you should these grounds.” He could feel the heat from their glares and it was enough to shame Netherrealm’s flames, but his brothers heeded his wishes.

Before any further question arose the other Elder Gods appeared by their thrones. Silence cascaded across the courts. Now every ear keened to listen for the coming declaration, however, it was not they who stood in judgement who spoke first.

“Did it really take you this long to come to a decision?” Shinnok smiled, looking at the others as if they didn’t stand as threats to him or his status. “Well then, don’t keep me waiting. Let’s hear it.”

“You will keep your peace, Shinnok.” The other Elder Gods sounded displeased and it felt relieving to Raiden to know that they didn’t spare their judgment from even one amongst their ranks. “This trial both infuriates and shames us. As it should shame you.”

Shinnok only rolled his shoulders. “The past is a trivial thing, I’m not one to let it bother me.”

Raiden could feel his teeth grinding at the way Shinnok held himself, at every word he combated with his fellow Elder Gods. He stood there as if he were in simple rebuttal with them instead of one charged with conviction. Damn him, and damn his plights.

“Whether you hold any remorse for what you’ve done, every upset will be accounted for. Lucifer was nowhere to be found, his whereabouts unconfirmed. Netherrealm has fallen into disarray. Its current way of life testifies negatively against the effects of your meddling. And Earthrealm . . .”

Bright eyes turned toward Raiden and his brethren. The Elder Gods looked at him with enough pity that it was almost enough to ease Raiden’s soul into a minor rest, but his spirit never settled, even with the unspoken condolences given by the highest of deities. Just like before, it would take time to heal. It’s what Raiden told himself, however even he knew that he had never fully recovered from what had been done to him all those centuries ago. And with these recent violations it would take a lot more strength to see his recovery rebound.

“We have enough representation to review your malicious deeds.” They then looked toward Cetrion. “You asked we retrieve proof, so we shall, and our witnesses shall be the entirety of the immortals present.”

Raiden glanced toward the goddess. She looked at him. There was shame glazing over her gaze, but her pity was not given to him, instead she turned and gave it to Shinnok as if he needed it.

Finally, the Elder Gods stood and addressed the gathering. "Immortals from the great and lesser realms, you have all been summoned here today to partake as witnesses to a most uncommon event indeed. One of our own stands in conviction to crimes we've oft asked of you to monitor and stand resolute against. Because of this you also bear witness to our shame over this unwarranted matter. May the universe guide our decisions and justice strengthen your hearts. On our word, we intend to right all that has been disturbed." They turned to Shinnok now, and there he stood, sneering at each of them as they encircled him with their might. It really was a strange vision, one that the universe would remember for millennia. "Elder God Shinnok, you have stood against the foundations of the universe and took yourself out of the role you were meant to reside in for eternity. You have donned the titles of murderer as well as conqueror, positions our kind was never meant to keep. This issue has disrupted all order we've maintained thus far, and it is your actions that have misaligned the cosmic balance, completely upsetting the hierarchy that has existed for eons."

Shinnok actually chuckled after all his crimes were listed. "You stand there acting outraged as if I've illegally merged realms. You cannot convict me of that when there was no such thing." Shinnok's eyes turned. He looked right at Raiden. Hadn't even taken a moment to search for him in the crowds. He locked eyes as if he knew he'd been standing right there the entire time. "Well, there had been merges." He looked proud of his actions, his tone dripping with pleasures he's used to harm Raiden and his realm. No doubt he did this to tear into the thunder god's mentality.

It worked.

Earthrealm's god leaned forward, his hands sparking as they clutched the railing keeping him at bay from setting foot on the grounds where the accused stood. "Elder Gods, I beg of you to enact penance for the evils he's wrought! Do not forsake justice!"

Omniscient eyes fell upon the enraged. "At ease, Raiden, this is a complicated matter."

Raiden looked up toward the Elder Gods with lightning in his eyes. His fingers curled around the railing until its very foundation began to cave beneath his rising strength.

"How can wrongs create complication? Is there none willing to condemn him?"

"Stay your voice." The Elder Gods seemed to take their time looking from Raiden and then to Shinnok. "Condemnation is the conclusion, only achievable when all has been heard and all has been seen, atrocities confirmed, actions damned, dismay rectified, and disorders reverted."

"Or when one is guilty." Everyone looked back toward Shinnok. He was still smiling. "I may have taken titles that was not originally imparted upon me, but displaying my supremacy to the realms and claiming a consort is not out of my rights."

Raiden's eyes widened at the excuses, glaring then toward the other Elder Gods who always seemed to fall into silence whenever that damned god would speak up. They couldn't just accept those words, those reasons. It wasn't right, no matter how it was put.

"You've planned this for some time, Shinnok." The Elder Gods seemed hesitant to say much, and their reservations worried Raiden's until it all gathered in the pit of his stomach and churned unhealthily inside him. "You hide behind your innate rights and then turn around and use these immunities as a battering-ram to assault the order we've created."

Shinnok shifted, tilting his head as if he found their words humorous. "I am curious how you'll find any means to validate a secure conviction. Even now with all eyes and ears here you have nothing to pit against me."

"They have Netherrealm's dismantling and Earthrealm's decimation!" Raiden's outburst pulled all eyes back toward him, even Shinnok's. Raiden glared right back, even as the bastard curled his lips at his infuriated display. "You cannot tell me that he can even hope to stand here in judgement and find a favorable verdict. Not after all he's done. Not after everything he’s destroyed, after everyone he's defiled."

"Raiden, calm your spirit. While it is unfortunate that your encounter resulted in an aggressive experience, remember it is an honor to become consort to an Elder God."

Raiden was taken aback so much by the response that he lost all forms of speech. Was he supposed to feel some sort of pride by their confirmation and commending tones? Was he supposed to see the traumas Shinnok, and even Cetrion, forced on him as nothing more than innocent affection?

No. They couldn’t ask that of him.

Raiden blinked, his gaze falling down. He leaned against the railing, his shoulders tense. The surrounding masses fixed their eyes on him. They looked at him with a mixture of emotions, each one making Raiden sick to his stomach. Their pity? He didn't want it. Their jealousy? Raiden gagged at the mere perversity of it. Their amusement? Only further proof of each realms’ internal dismantling. He didn't ask for the eyes of an obsessive Elder God, nor did he for the universe’s attention.

Teeth rubbing, Raiden huffed out a breath. He kept his gaze down, trying as hard as he could to vanquish the heat rising in it. As outside of their reality and their strife as the Elder Gods were, Raiden tried so hard to cling to the respect he’s always held for them in his heart.

"My honor was taken when that power hungry deceiver came into my realm." Raiden looked up. All of the Elder Gods were looking at him. Listening to him. "Now . . . now you're telling me to rejoice in it as if I've found good fortune? I find no equity in that ideology."

Raiden could feel himself weakening. The strength he managed to build for this trip, for this moment was waning, stretching as thin as his current fragility. He was trembling. His knees wanted to buckle, and his body collapse under the despair his spirit still suffered from.

He was fighting the need to do just that. But his brothers were standing behind him, thus he had to remain on his feet so that he could fight; for himself, for them, and for their realm. He didn’t have time to give into his wounds, especially not now.

The Elder Gods exchanged looks and spoke quietly to one another. When they spoke again, their voices were low. “It is a complicated matter.”

A complicated matter. Just because Shinnok was an Elder God. Of course.

Raiden came to the heavenly courts with dread pooling in his stomach over being in the same realm as Shinnok but hope swelling up his chest over knowing he’d stand as witness to his damnation. Raiden has yet to feel the relief of the latter and it made him dizzy suddenly believing it may never come. After watching the Elder Gods lean toward one another, whispering clueless words to each other only aggravated the thunder god more and stirred dissent.

This horrid uncertain intermission gave the other deities present the chance to raise their own voices. They spoke amongst themselves and then toward one another. They said such harsh things, such sad things. Raiden tried to ignore it, but he was already caught in the middle of it all.

“You are consort to Shinnok now?” Shao’s curious question held no undertones of malice or tasteless tease, but it irked Raiden regardless.

“Mind yourself.” Argus swatted the large god with his hand. His face showed irritation over the comment, as well as the other comments fluttering around, but more than any other emotion, he showed himself full of sympathetic grief. His eyes soft when they looked toward Raiden. “I’m sorry.”

“Keep your apologies.” Raiden’s fists clenched. His heart hammered inside his sickening chest. He could still feel Shinnok’s eyes on him. “I am no one’s consort.” Raiden turned his eyes toward Cetrion first and found her staring as well, then he leaned toward Shinnok. “No one’s.”

“Elder God Shinnok.” The sound of the Elder Gods speaking again quieted the gods. They leaned in close, waiting for the lay of the sentence they had all come to find out. “In light of all that has been said and validated, our choices over which proper consequences to impart will in turn test the boundaries of order. But before we relay you our decisions we wish for you to inform the courts as to why you’ve done all that you have.”

Shinnok remained quiet even after the inquiry. His gaze turned toward the crowds, washing over them to create more wariness. After passing over Raiden he looked at Cetrion. “You ask me why when my actions have already spoken the reasons for it all.” Shinnok turned his gaze back to the other four Elder Gods. Never before had anyone seen ill contempt in the deity’s gaze for them, until now. “I wanted to do all those things. Sitting up here, passing each millennia like the next just to retain a comfortable status quo was not my destiny. And I ensured it wouldn’t be. Even as an Elder God I have ambitions, and wants.” He looked back at Cetrion. A soft expression passed between them. It was almost endearing if not considering the circumstance. “We keep ourselves from meddling too much throughout the realms yet can take no control in our own lives? I find that hardly fair, and as a supreme deity it is not comely.” The eyes looking at his fellows were harsh, blazing even. Against them all he bore himself as a threat. A challenge against his own brethren. And he showed no shame. “If there has been wrong I’ve done in my existence then it was remaining aimless. No more. I will sit here no more.”

The Elder Gods showed a sadness over his address. Raiden understood. Their comradery had been resolute, unmolested since the dawn of time. They had accomplished great things alongside one another. But now one of their own pulled away and disavowed them and all they originally stood for. Their predicament was tragic.

“Shinnok, we offer you one of two terms: the first is you recant from your deeds and retire to the heavens for eternity, the second is you revoke your title as Elder God and submit to the laws of the realms.”

Expectant eyes fell on Shinnok. Yet even in hearing these decisions, he didn’t so much as stammer. Instead, he laughed again.

“What is in a title but words? No matter which choice I am given you cannot take my power.”

“No, but we can restrain you.” The Elder Gods stood tall and resistant. Their eyes burned like fires, and the quake of their energies shuddered through the gods around. It would be more than foolish to stand against their might, even if it was via another Elder God.

With their stances clear and secure, what surprised the spectators was the way Shinnok himself amplified his energies to clash their own. “You can try.”

The others looked astonished by his display. “You’d fight us?”

Shinnok’s eyes darkened, his smile sharpening into something more sinister, the likes of which Raiden has unfortunately witnessed. “For supremacy and the freedom of my ambitions, I do.”

The Elder Gods looked to one another. They looked conflicted on what to do. They’ve never fought amongst themselves. There were disagreements, and this current disapproval, but to physically resist the other was something never before done. Now Shinnok called for this challenge and once again they were left unable to properly respond.

When disappointment finally situated itself inside each of the deities, the Elder Gods turned back toward Shinnok. “You will not triumph.”

Shinnok jutted his chin. Never showing one ounce of regret in his exclamation. “Are you certain?”

The moment one of the Elder Gods lurched forward and struck Shinnok the others soon followed his action. The courts erupted into a battlefield, the likes of which shook the very heavens and rattled every soul present. Their sheer might was legendary, and those present were now watching another legend unfold.

It was this strength, this fury was what held the One Being off. This magnitude ripped the great devourer to pieces and by those powerful hands the realms were formed. Now those fists were colliding with one another, creating aftershocks in their wake and destruction in their tussle.

The Elder Gods stretched themselves, their forms growing until they nearly encapsulated the entire expanse of Heaven itself. Clogging up the space around and in between, their energies suffocated the air around, churning in such a way that the present immortals began to sway with dizziness. Yet they remained, pale-faced and wide-eyed as they watched this battle unfold.

Shinnok was thrown to the ground and then pummeled with each aimed fist. Even Cetrion had no other choice but to move against him, and with her assistance she held him bound by her vines while the others beat him until he bled. And it was that blood that seeped into the atmosphere, colliding powerfully with the energies already mingled and tense.

“Cease this, Shinnok.” The other Elder Gods looked infuriated. They trembled, each blow came more reluctant than the last. It was an aspiring spectacle. Their adoration for one of their own wasn’t lost despite the obvious corruption.

When the Elder Gods finally relented they pulled their might away and stood there side by side; a wall of power that Shinnok couldn’t even hope to break through. The battered god was shaking from the recent altercation, his limbs strained by the pains inflicted. But there was no surrender in the way Shinnok shifted, pulling himself back up and wiping at the blood spilling from him. “I will not!” He said with fervent will.

Their sadness over this situation shifted into anger. The Elder Gods tensed, stances ready to push against Shinnok once more. “You really have fallen to madness.”

Shinnok smiled at the comment. “If I have, so be it. But it is you who remain in shame by not honoring my wishes.”

His words pulled the gods back in. Shinnok did what he could to defend himself, but there were too many against him and their power equaled his own. Combined, he was overwhelmed and overtaken. His retreat and continual defense from their assaults was the only outcome he could face.

As shameful and sad as it all was, Raiden couldn’t help but feel relief in beholding it all. Watching the Elder Gods strike out against Shinnok unrestrained gave him a sense of satisfaction. His faith in their sanctity restored as they resisted the corruption in their home.

Where many of the gods took cover from this unraveling mayhem, Raiden stood planted, gaze fixed, watching every detail, every punishing blow. He felt the seismic shocks slamming into his form from their godly collisions, but he ignored the quake it caused his frame. He intended to watch this clash until the end. The very end.

It was before Raiden’s eyes that his enemy collided with the ground, the paved courts broken into ruin. Limbs twisted and lacerations multiplied. Even in Heaven an Elder God could sustain threatening damage. The sound of Shinnok’s moans of agony lifted Raiden’s spirit and brightened the light in his eyes as he watched the damned god’s form shake in pain when he attempted to rise again.

One Elder God wouldn’t let him move. He slammed his foot down against Shinnok’s head, smashing his face into the broken court platform below.

“Stay down, Shinnok. In all your faults we are still brothers. We will keep you here.” The Elder Gods’ sadness touched Raiden. Even in Shinnok’s corruption there was love for him. This tender loyalty evoked similar feelings inside the thunder god. He knew brotherhood well, and it was through this empathy that a peace encased him, lulling his unsettled soul into rest knowing that the Elder Gods would hold Shinnok under their watchful eyes and secure might until the end of time.

The battle disturbed everyone and rang across every realms, lesser and great. The mere sight of Shinnok’s continual resistance distressed Raiden’s inner peace. His face pulled into a frown as he watched the Elder God resist the brokenness of his body and push against the foot holding him down.

Shinnok’s battered state was most uncomely for an Elder God. His robes were tattered, the jewels encrusted thereon shatter and fragmented. The crown atop his head was chipped as was a multitude of the teeth in his mouth. Skin torn and bones splintered. He sat there hunched, inhaling pained breaths.

He brought it all upon himself. His tumultuous actions cried out for justice, and its kind could only be given by the most supreme of beings. No sympathy was given or felt by the masses in viewing. Nothing but pity fell on Shinnok that day and by that it was only from his brethren. Each of them extended this emotion, brushing it against Shinnok’s fields to remind him of their continual love for him. However, it was obvious Shinnok resisted their hearts by the way he shifted, sneering and growling at each of them.

Leaning back, Shinnok pushed himself up onto his hands and knees, head hung, his arms shook just to hold himself up and his shoulders shifted, swaying with unbalance. He coughed, gagging on his own bile and blood dripping down his chin. This was his defeat, yet his spirit remained strong and defiant.

It was in this curled state that none of the Elder Gods noticed the faint glow between Shinnok’s teeth.

Raiden immediately recognized the energy signal. His eyes widened at the sight of the glowing blue orb rolling between Shinnok’s teeth. Earthrealm’s jinsei. The piece shattered as soon as he crunched it together, its essence seeping out only for its potency to be absorbed a moment later into the Elder God’s pain-riddled energies.

There hadn’t even been time for a proper reaction when Shinnok shot up, his arm stabbing through the chest of the closest Elder God. The shock of it all enabled him to grab another god standing just behind the one he impaled. He took her by the head and slammed the both of them down. This startled the others enough to retaliate.

The two wounded gods took too long to get back up. Shinnok used the piece of jinsei to amplify his power. And it was this that gave him the edge that he needed.

Previous wounds faded away the longer Shinnok allowed the energy to course through him. He lunged, tackling his fellow Elder Gods, crushing their forms and forcing their energies to disperse. He began to defeat them one by one.

This twist of events created panic. Soon enough the surrounding immortals began to shuffle away, wide eyes rolled with worry as Shinnok overpowered the other Elder Gods. A moment of relief came when two of them rebounded, striking Shinnok with combined effort. The God flew and crashed into pillars and landscapes. But his recovery came in the form of nearby deities.

Leaning back up, Shinnok activated his dark magic and captured the essence of the immortals unfortunate enough to stand closest to his fallen form. As soon as he had their energies he absorbed it into himself and leapt to his feet with renewed strength. This action and the dying cries of the victims broke all sense of safety, the remaining gods decided it was the best time to run.

“Damn it, no!” Argus was trembling with the need to flee with the rest. He leaned away, his eyes wide at the sight of Shinnok smashing through the other Elder Gods. When he reached forward he took hold of Fujin and Suiten. “Now’s as good a time as any to get out of here!”

The elemental brothers looked at each other and then turned to their eldest. It was Fujin who reached out for Raiden. “We must go.”

Raiden stood there, frozen. Horrified. His head shook, unable to accept what he was witnessing.

“Raiden!” Fujin now tugged at him. He managed to twist him around, now Raiden’s wide eyes were staring at the panicked faces of his brothers. “We must leave, now.”

Argus pushed forward. “Come to Edenia with me!”

Fujin and the others said nothing else. There wasn’t enough time. Instead their eyes pleaded with their brother to shake off his fright and run.

The brothers’ combined strength could have pulled Raiden with them hadn’t the cries of other gods falling into distress taken a hold of the thunder god and moved him toward them. Twisting, Raiden let his upset rule his being. With a shout, his lightning shot out, striking the binds Shinnok created to absorb all he could. It snapped the sucking energies and in turn pulled Shinnok’s fiery eyes toward him.

“Get them out of here!” Raiden’s eyes narrowed. His tone commanding. He looked at his brothers expectantly, and as faithful as they were to him, he knew they would not resist his wishes. “Save all that you can and get them out of this place.”

Simultaneous nods and Raiden’s brothers bounded away to assist everyone they could. Raiden would have done the same hadn’t he lured Shinnok’s attention. The Elder God came after him and despite the spirit he’d broken twice, Raiden resisted—again.

Leaping high, Raiden flew through the clouds, charging them as he went. As soon as Shinnok followed, Raiden’s will darkened their formation and currents of the highest voltage struck the Elder God. It had little effect on him, even in their heights, but the way his electricity made Shinnok twitch helped Raiden maneuver himself further away, gaining substantial distance from him.

As soon as Raiden shifted away, he felt the rush of oncoming energies from another Elder God. They were wounded, but driven to collide with Shinnok’s approaching form. The clash tumbled them both and the shockwaves pushed against Raiden until he too fell back toward the ground. He would have crashed into already crumbling structures hadn’t someone came up and taken a hold of him, stopping his projected path.

Grunting, Raiden’s wide eyes looked into Shao’s glowing ambers. Secured in his strong arms, Shao clung to him with commendable support just enough until they landed back onto the grounds. Now nestled on the ground, Raiden pulled away, feeling the Outworld god’s essence brushing uncertainty against him.

“What is happening?” Shao watched the gods wrestle above and then jumped as they collided with the grounds below.

“He has a piece of Earthrealm’s power,” Raiden said, eyes narrowed, watching with growing paranoia as Shinnok stamped the challenging Elder God into the ground. “He’s using it to amplify his own might.”

“Does an Elder God even need that?” Shao looked at Raiden. He was right to worry.

Raiden held the silence. There wasn’t any reason to answer. No, Shinnok didn’t. He was strong on his own. Having the strength of any one realm was a massive amount of power in itself, and for it to be used by a god—an Elder God—was destructible on a cosmic scale.

“I say let them deal with it.” Raiden looked at Shao who had his eyes narrowed at the turning events. “This isn’t a matter we can assist with. And we’re foolish if we think we can.” He looked at Raiden with condemning eyes, but Raiden brushed them away.

“If he does this to Heaven what will he do to our realms?” Raiden had already seen his own destroyed. Having it done twice over would be the end of him.

Shao was quiet, his eyes filling with fury over the thought, yet face continued to fall in horror as he watched Shinnok stand victorious over the other Elder Gods. Raiden turned and saw the mad Elder God rise, moving away from the other’s unmoving form. Raging eyes turned toward them.

“No realm will be safe,” Raiden confirmed. And Shao knew this. They both tensed as the Elder God approached, shaking the air around them with each step.

The very thought of their realms on such collapsing danger shook their cores, and their inherit duties to these lands pulled them into risen defenses. But in all rationality what could they do? They, the sentinels of realms that had no means to defend itself against such power.

Another shockwave announced Shinnok’s proximity. It pushed Raiden and Shao back, encouraging them both to retreat with the rest of the immortals. But from where they stood they watched as the ground broke apart and up rose stretching binds. Aimed, they moved toward Shinnok, winding around his arms, his wrists, his legs, and his neck. As soon as all was secure these tendrils tightened, pulling taut until they all pulled the Elder God down, slamming him face first into the ground.

Raiden and Shao’s wide eyes turned toward the last remaining Elder God still standing. Cetrion.

She hadn’t been saved from Shinnok’s rampage. Wounds littered her once beautiful figure. She stood on a weak leg, her face covered in cuts, each seeping her essence. But her eyes were bright and determined.

“Forgive me, brother!” She cried, using all of her might to cover Shinnok in root and vine, pushing him into the ground. From there she grew greens, intending to have their roots dismember him, but his fury pulled against her effects and the moment he broke free he came for her.

Shao and Raiden fell to the ground as Shinnok jumped over them toward Cetrion’s position. He collided with her with a force so shattering that surrounding structures tore into pieces around them, and the force of it all pushed the goddess into a crater. When Shinnok took a hold of her he bent her back until she nearly snapped in half. Before Cetrion could even let out a gasp of pain he covered her mouth with his.

Raiden felt when Shinnok passed a piece of the jinsei into Cetrion. But there was something wrong with it, the energy was too mixed, too mingled with Shinnok’s maliciousness. Cetrion’s essence took it in as means to heal her wounded form but by accepting it it also allowed all its imperfections, and from that it deformed Cetrion herself.

Pushing himself up, Raiden watched as Cetrion choked on what she’d been given. She squirmed, trembling in Shinnok’s grasp, but he wouldn’t let her go, not until she gave into it—just like he had. It was a terrifying sight; Cetrion’s transformation. Her greenery gave way to browns and reds, lined with crackling fire. Her eyes, once green and bright, now blazed like the core’s magma. Her violet hued skin shifted into ashen and it burned, burned with power and heat.

“Is that supposed to happen?” Shao stood up, his eyes as wide as Raiden’s.

Raiden stood beside him, teeth grit. “No, it’s not.” Stretching out his hands he fried the ascending roots that nearly sprung up upon them. Other deities weren’t so lucky.

When Shinnok released Cetrion she curled in on herself, her cries bouncing off the ruined buildings and morphed landscapes. Her roots came then, sinking in and then rising up. It caught fleeing gods, wrapping around them. Some were squeezed until their forms caved in, and those that weren’t were the most unlucky.

“Take them,” Shinnok hummed against her, reaching out and caressing her trembling form. “Take as many as you want.”

Rising up, Cetrion settled with her new form. Her fiery gaze turned to all she’d ensnared. Her tendrils brought them in close and as soon as she reached out to them she began to feed on their essences.

Raiden shuddered with each god’s cry as they were taken apart and eaten whole. It was an atrocious sight, one only the horror of horrors could be. An Elder God feeding on their own subjects was so unfathomable that the thunder god often wondered if he passed through some nightmare. Yet the unsettling truth was that all this was real and was coming to pass, unfolding like the flipping pages of a shinigami’s notebook.

And the more Cetrion fed she grew, just as Shinnok had.

“There will be no end.” Shao took a few retreating steps back. He looked at Raiden, his wary eyes warning him to flee.

Instinct persisted they do so, but Raiden knew that this unfurling fate would eventually befall them as well. Even one such as Shao, who was never one to concern himself with the problematic future, could not deny this omen.

A sudden blur passed before them, shaking Raiden and Shao out of their stunned stupor. Argus dashed through the grounds and into the air to cut a few helpless gods free. Behind him was Fujin and the others; carrying on the duties Raiden had entrusted them with.

“Get up!” Argus called out. “We have to take who we can and get out of here! They may come after us, but at least in our own realms we can give them a fight to remember!”

Raiden looked at his brothers. Their spirits sung with Argus’ words. With a nod he joined them.

They cut loose whoever they could and it was Shao who helped these drained immortals through awaiting portals. There were many they couldn’t save, and it shamed their souls that they weren’t strong enough to do so. But Cetrion continued to grow and Shinnok’s eyes were on them. Retreat was nigh.

Shao had just turned and disappeared himself into the portals. Argus was on his heels, his arms motioning for Raiden and his brothers to do the same, but as soon as Raiden inched closer to the vortex the pains of vices wracked along his body. His gasps of pain was joined by those closest to him, too caught up in the tight grasp of Cetrion’s roots.

Argus’ wide eyes gawked up at them as Raiden and his brethren were dragged away. But it was Argus who came back. He lunged, taking a hold of Raiden and allowing him to take his energies to sear his binds with a quick and powerful charge. In his freedom, Raiden allowed Argus to pull him back toward the portal.

“Raiden!”

Both Raiden and Argus twisted at the sound of Shinnok’s call, but it was Raiden whose spirit froze and clutched in horror. Cetrion held up the entangled bodies of Suiten and Katen and Jiten while Shinnok had Fujin pushed underneath him, his fingers around his neck so that his brother could see how they curled into his skin, more than ready to snap the structure of it.

“You leave then you leave them to me.” Shinnok’s eyes flickered like a wild flame, too excited for this current scenario. Cetrion’s gaze was so very similar, except she looked down at the three she had as if eager to dine on their very flesh.

Instinctually Raiden took a step forward. Argus was the wiser one who reached out to halt him. Yet even in his rationality, Raiden still threatened the Edenian god with charged volts.

“Raiden!”

Argus shook his head, ignoring Raiden’s offensive shocks. “Don’t. It’ll be the end of you.”

As a friend, Raiden understood Argus’ need to save those he could, even if it was solely Raiden, but as a brother, Raiden knew things that the Edenian protector never could. Life was more sacrificial when you weren’t alone. When a brother fell in need—even if they never asked for help—it was always the eldest’s duty to see every requisite to the end. And Raiden hadn’t changed from this conviction. Not even now.

His heart hammered, tumbling in the chills of fright. A heavy amount of Raiden’s initial fear came from self-worry, but ultimately he forced it against to fret over the worst fear he’s felt in his existence—and all of that aimed over his brothers’ safety. It was something he just couldn’t ignore.

Raiden shook Argus off and turned away, leaving the Edenian with remorse filled eyes. “They’re my brothers.”

Forcing himself to move closer, Raiden’s steps were slow. He kept his eyes on the Elder Gods just paces away, and those of his brothers struggling in their grasps. Each step over upturned gravel and mound gave Raiden an expectance for Cetrion’s hidden binds, but he remained free and unhindered in his walk toward them.

Eyes narrowed at the two monstrous deities, the wrongs of all they’ve enacted on him flashed across them, returning to his mind so vividly, as well as scenarios that would likely be in his not-so-distant-future. Raiden recognized the fear inside him and didn’t shun it. He accepted his horrified position and tried his best to lean against it so it would spur him to aid his brothers who needed him the most.

Coming to a halt, Raiden stood before Shinnok and Cetrion. They too remained still, eyes ever observing. This proximity pulled out waves of anxiousness inside the thunder god, but it was from there he was able to see the state of his brothers better, as well as hear their pained cries.

Their moans and groans beat against Raiden’s eardrums. The distress in their voices had him clenching his fists, especially as his brethren choked, wheezing in the clutches of their captors. Raiden could see how Katen struggled, trying all he could to wrestle against the binds wound around him. And Fujin hissed past clenched teeth, his eyes strained in fright as he watched Raiden come closer.

“Nmm, No!” Fujin shook against Shinnok. “Raiden, n—!”

Shinnok looked pleased by Raiden’s heed, but tugged Fujin closer. Cetrion only mirrored his movements. “Closer, Raiden. Don’t you want to see if your brothers are well?”

Cetrion’s coil around the other three began to constrict, the strength only bent the elemental deities more, tearing into muscle until their very bones were rubbed against. Their tormented cries pierced into Raiden, but what troubled him more was the fact that none were calling out for help.

Charges flowed down Raiden’s arms toward clenched fists. Raiden clutched his fingers so hard his very nails dug into his palms, cutting the skin. He didn’t care for the blood dripping down his fists, his eyes sparking, focusing only on the monsters before him that made him bubble with unforgiving anger.

“Ah, ah, Raiden, you must yield or we make them.” Shinnok looked down at Fujin. Just a simple shift of his fingers had Fujin crying out in pain. He was on the precipice of breaking.

Immortals could not die, but they could be dispersed—just like what Shinnok did to the other Elder Gods. This act would force their essence to the ends of the universe and it would take time to reform, so much time. However, it wasn’t that which frightened Raiden the most. Shinnok and Cetrion had eaten other gods, they had absorbed them into their beings, trapping their energies there for an eternity. If they killed his brothers their dispersing essence could very well fall victim to that fate.

Raiden couldn’t let that happen. No matter what.

“Release them!” Raiden hid his grinding teeth behind pressed lips. His eyes fell shut as he forced his shaking body to kneel. “Lord Shinnok, Lady Cetrion, release my brothers and I will yield to you.”

Shinnok nodded. “I know you will, but you see . . . my sister is so very hungry.” He turned to Cetrion. There was nothing in his actions or reactions that showed Raiden that he would try and stop her. That was why Cetrion shifted unhinged and snapped the three gods she had.

“NO!” Raiden looked up in horror. His heart falling. The sight of his three brothers’ motionless, lives eradicated sunk devastation wounds into his soul. This assaulting anguish washed over him like the fear that had controlled him before. That fear was gone.

Rage encased him and Raiden exploded. Without passing another beat Raiden aimed his attack toward Cetrion. He charred the roots stained with his brothers’ blood. They disintegrated immediately and the gods fell from her grasp.

“Raiden! Behind you!” In came Argus, bouncing around Raiden’s lightning and sliding in between him and Cetrion. The goddess came forward, reaching out to take up those she’d killed, but Argus was fast. He gathered up the three bodies and dragged them away as quickly as he could. In his retreat, Raiden shot out a bright pulse, blinding Cetrion momentarily and even getting her to take a step back.

As soon as Argus rushed past him with his brothers secured, Raiden turned toward Shinnok. The Elder God stood there with an amused smile. In his hands was Fujin’s lifeless body, his head twisted too far. “I warned you, Raiden.”

All sense of restrained distance fell away. Raiden flew toward Shinnok and collided into him. Their clash tumbled them both over, but Raiden had no intention to wrestle. As soon as the Elder God had been knocked off balance Raiden in turn moved back to take Fujin into his arms. He held him tightly, securely as he then jumped after Argus toward their awaiting escape route.

Raiden’s slip forward was not because of his own uneven steps, but from a root that sprouted by Cetrion’s will and strung around his ankle. Its strength snapped the joint immediately and as Raiden fell he clutched Fujin close. His arms shook, sparking and sizzling the hinges of his brother’s coat and the tips of his hair. Raiden tried to move, but every time he situated his knee underneath him the root pulled and unbalanced his resisting form. Fujin’s cold body still nestled securely in his arms was the only thing keeping his mind away from his inevitable ensnarement.

“Argus!” Raiden tried pulling against the root again, but it only crept further, now encasing his thigh. It wouldn’t take much for Cetrion to rip off his leg. As he looked up he locked eyes with Edenia’s protector. “Take Fujin! Argus, please!”

The god’s wide eyes looked back at the two Elder Gods. His terror shifted his features and painted his skin pale, and it took more than a moment for his to turn his trembling eyes back toward Raiden. The thunder god continued to fight, to pull himself away, but another root broke through the crackled courtyard and arched down to wind itself around his abdomen. As soon as it got a hold of Raiden it tightened, squeezing until the bones below began to crack. The sound echoed back to Argus and broke his unmoving state long enough for him to rush forward.

Taking a hold of Fujin’s body, Argus tugged only to find out Raiden hadn’t let go. He looked at Raiden then.

“Watch over them.” Raiden’s eyes filled with bitter grief, especially as he let go of the wind god.

Without another word, Argus took Fujin into his arms and fled through the portal. He didn’t watch how Raiden was overtaken by the roots, pulled back and dragged over the shards of Heaven’s remains until he was so close to Cetrion that she could reach out and touch him.

“Raiden.” Her voice roared like a smith’s furnace. Her tone was pleasant, but her touch burned the thunder god.

Shinnok came up alongside Cetrion, looking more than pleased with her catch. Reaching out he ran his hands down her sides, an encouraging gesture. “Take all you want.” And with a kiss against her neck, Shinnok removed himself, taking on the role of specter while Cetrion moved, swaying as her hands ran down Raiden’s form.

As a root wrapped around Raiden’s neck and squeezed, Raiden gagged. His arms strained to pull at the others suffocating his wrists, but as he sparked their extensions only thickened and tightened. His hat fluttered to the ground as he was lifted, roots both thick and thin sliding around him, keeping his struggles at a minimum.

There was no doubt in his mind that he’d be torn to shreds and then his energies devoured. Raiden was prepared. He surrendered himself to this fate, glad in the fact that it was him about to suffer this atrocity and not those he cared for the most.

Eyes clenched shut, Raiden envisioned his four brothers, his lips moving to the syllables of their names. He regretted that he wouldn’t get to see life return to the eyes, that he wouldn’t be able to stand beside them as the last remnants of the universe fell to Shinnok’s perversity. But the memory of them kept him strong as his own end came about in the heated gaze of Elder Goddess Cetrion.

She pressed closer. Her hot hands took hold of his azure robes and tore. The silver stitches of swirling clouds burned away from her heat and when her palms moved against his chest Raiden let out a resisting cry. It turned Cetrion’s eyes toward his own and there he silently pleaded with her, pleaded that she fight Shinnok’s corruption, that she throw off his influence and stand against all of the madness.

His gaze lured her closer. Her face covering his own. It was there her heat passed over him while those bright eyes of hers seemed to darken the longer they burned.

Her hand that rose up brushed fingers down the side of Raiden’s face in the most gentle of manners, but the god still flinched away from it. Raiden broke their eye contact to clench his shut. It was hopeless, whatever he tried to assume Cetrion could be would never be.

Nothing was said, but Raiden could hear her sigh. He could hear every sound she made as her breath passed over his skin hot and dry. When she pressed her lips against his jaw, Raiden’s mouth twitched downward. The feel of her descent only made him churn more.

The encasing roots moved by Cetrion’s command. If she wanted Raiden stretched then they tugged until his arms and legs were splayed. If she wanted him complacent then she only had to will they squeeze until Raiden began to pale.

From his inevitable incapacitation, Cetrion could let her hands run along his body unchallenged, tearing at any article of clothing that got in her way. And when her hands fell away from one patch of skin to caress another, her tendrils followed, grazing along him in the same near-gentle manner. Though the rough texture of each root irritated Raiden’s skin, leaving streak of red where they passed over.

These motions came unrestricted. Raiden choked out a groan when he felt one of Cetrion’s tendrils slide into his pants just as her own hands snapped the rope that bound them together. He shivered as it brushed along his inner thigh, and then up against his flaccid cock. He jerked away from the movement, and tried to move his legs together, but his sudden shift alerted Cetrion to his intention and a command later had him stretched out again.

Stripped bare, Cetrion’s eyes fixated on the path of Raiden’s markings. They curled around his shoulders, down his back and further still. Her fingers followed their path, ensuring that her touch created markings of their own. Blisters from her heat made the muscles along Raiden’s back twitch, and the nails that raked down afterward only opened these newly designed wounds. It was the kisses that followed these sharp pains that were meant to chase away any shuddering agony. But they never did, not for Raiden.

The root around Raiden’s neck never loosened, making his breaths come in few and between. Its intention almost seemed like it was to distract him from the paths of the other wiggling tendrils, the ones aligned along Cetrion’s more devious cognitive ambitions.

There was a thin tendril that came around Raiden’s chest, moving around the heavier one crushing his ribs. It snuck along the definitions of his pectorals, ending to curl alongside the soft skin of his left nipple. He tried to shift away from it, but he was secured and couldn’t move more than a few twitches. Raiden’s inability to move spurred these extended touches, all of which violated his will.

His mind was pulled away from the unwarranted touches of the roots when Cetrion brought her fingers down along Raiden’s face in a caress. Bright eyes looked at her as she wound her hands passed his hood and into his hair, Raiden could smell the locks crumbling away to her heat. She tugged, taking a chunk of his ivory tresses with her pull.

With how close she was Raiden felt every disrupted swirl of her energies. Cetrion buzzed with unbalanced circulation, and it rolled inside her as if constantly trying to level out. In all the time it was taking her to fully come into this transformation her might became a danger left on its own, and it was this lack of control that touched Raiden and hurt him and molested him.

“Raiden, Raiden.” Cetrion whispered against his skin, moving her lips along his chest while her roots brushed over him, one twining, coiling against his nipple until it tugged and twisted, and when it tormented the pert bud enough it did so to the other. All of them were moving, even the roots meant to keep him still. Their touch disgusted Raiden but it was Cetrion’s smile that tormented him more. She looked less apocalyptic with such endearing expressions, like how her beautiful features used to be, but they still came closer than what Raiden wanted.

When Cetrion secured her hot hands against the sides of Raiden’s face, she pulled, kissing him and then kissing him again. Her lips seared into his skin, but it was the heat from her tongue that tried to burn a hole through him. Prodding and poking, Cetrion rubbed her steaming tongue along Raiden’s sealed teeth. The thunder god wouldn’t move for her no matter how she shifted and begged with the movement of her body.

Her gentle hand clutched, hooking just underneath Raiden’s jaw and into his cheeks. She forced his mouth open and the moment she moved into him she lapped and lingered, taking her time to memorize the way he felt and the way he tasted. While she kept him there and ravished his mouth, she let her roots roam, brushing down his arms, down his back, between his legs.

Raiden’s groan when the roots curled around his phallic length was eaten by Cetrion. She held him there, violating his mouth while her tendrils caressed him. Just as she pressed her body closer, so too did the roots shift in their touch. It all made Raiden shake, especially as the roots made him move against his will, grinding into Cetrion to make her moan against him.

When Cetrion pulled away her eyes fluttered shut. The movement had her lifting herself, winding legs around Raiden’s waist. She bucked against him then, rolling herself in alluring and sensual motions. Raiden’s refusal to react to her though only brought about more torment from Cetrion’s extensions.

Raiden’s eyes widened, flickering when one slithered up his thigh, nudging him near the ass. The tip prodded him, rubbing just along the puckered muscle before moving back down his thigh. It wasn’t the end though, it returned with thinner tendrils, in similar fashions to the ones gliding up and down his cock. And they continued to rub him, to tease him until his mind spun with fright and madness.

Along with Cetrion, Raiden was completely covered in vines and roots. Each slithering around him, moving into places that made him shudder and shake. When one inevitably pushed into him, Raiden’s sudden gasp was staunched firstly by Cetrion’s lips and tongue but as her tongue shifted and hardened, the goddess pulled away to let another of her roots pass through the thunder god’s orifice, keeping his jaw strained and his throat occupied with gagging spasms.

His discomfort was ignored. Cetrion focused on her own pleasures, the ones she took from grinding against him, arching when she brushed him in just the right way. Those eyes of hers opened again, looking at him with enjoyment. Raiden felt her run her hand down his abdomen, sliding down further along his bound cock. She took hold of him, her grasp tightening just as the coil did. It made Raiden buck, but his movement didn't get him any further away from Cetrion's invasive ministrations.

He had to endure watching the Elder Goddess take hold of his groin, tugging him as she shifted her hips. When she rolled herself over Raiden again he felt her moist slick dripping down onto him, coating her fingers and the bind wound around him. Cetrion's eyes were bright, intent. She showed Raiden just where she wanted him, but he still wasn't ready for her.

So the roots squirmed, rubbing him from the inside out. It made Raiden tremble against the pains and gasp when they subsided to unwelcome ecstasy. The tendril wound around his thigh, pressing into his behind thickened and the stretching made Raiden cough around the root jammed into his mouth. It was enough to make him yelp his pains but he couldn't, though his muffled noises didn't go unnoticed by Cetrion.

When she leaned over him, she burned away her garments. Her breasts pressed against the blisters along his chest, her nipples rubbing into them with purpose. Her chin caressed his neck before she looked him in the face.

"Shhh, shhh. We will merge soon enough." Cetrion's fingers once more played with the tips of Raiden's hair, her other hand still occupied with rubbing him to fullness. But he hadn't been, even when Cetrion guided him inside her core, Raiden hadn't been near as stiff as was acceptable. The Elder Goddess pushed on, dismissing her patience and guiding his erection into her tight entrance.

At the feel of her inner heat and vibrating moans, Raiden's eyes closed. He did what he could to turn away. Trying so hard to just fall away from the horrors of the present, but the roots holding him continued to tighten, as if keeping his body focused on the pains so that he would in turn react to the goddess as she so desired. After all, it was those vices that moved his body along with Cetrion's gyrations, ensuring his form was the most pleasing for her.

But amongst these tugging pains and mounting pleasures, Raiden's sadness finally began to eclipse him. The strength he clung to released him and he fell, he fell into an abyss and willingly lost himself.

For a time, Raiden was gone, fallen away from all senses of his body. He let Cetrion have him for as long as she wanted. He passed from that plane of existence in search for security and undisturbed peace. He found it.

In the recess of his soul, Raiden sunk underneath the black waters of his sorrow. There was more comfort there than he would have expected, and it was in those waters he waded, letting his mind fall away as well. With the weight of every other feeling gone, Raiden felt the pinprick sensation of relief slowly mixing into the waters. As faux as the comfort was that began to wash over him, it was still a solace from the agony his consciousness was in, and it’s there he wanted to remain for eternity.

The sharp pains that disrupted this quiet were sudden and so fierce in their growth that it pulled Raiden out of his grim oasis. And as he was pulled back to consciousness he realized the insistent pains came from negative energies slamming into his essence, pushing against his regulated circulation, trying to tear apart his very makeup.

Raiden's eyes snapped open, his face morphing from the pain as Shinnok took him by the jaw, his hand glowing an eerie red. It burned Raiden with a temperature unlike Cetrion's. His attempt to pull away from it was thwarted. Shinnok wouldn’t let go as he stood just behind him, one arm entwined in the roots tangling his torso, and his other around his shoulders, hand holding his chin up while Cetrion rode him.

"That's not fair, Raiden. Come back to us." Shinnok slapped him again, those burning fingers of his curling into the hollow of Raiden's jaw. His grip made the squirming tendril spasm down Raiden's throat and he choked more, his nostrils flaring just trying to maintain himself. "There, there you go. Can't be rude now, not after Cetrion's worked so hard to make you comfortable."

Raiden looked back at the goddess, she was trembling, her muscles clamping around him just as her orgasm washed over her. The scent of her juices was overwhelming, pungent, and the squeeze of her walls enticed his body to react in kind. Raiden was hard, which meant his foliage assistance was no longer necessary.

Cetrion rolled her hips, moaning in higher pitches when the tendril unwound from around Raiden's cock and slipped away and out of her. She rolled her hips afterwards, clutching herself and dragging Raiden with her. She bounced on him again, continuing to use her roots to move Raiden the way she wanted him to. She even had his arms reach out and encircle her as she leaned in closer, clinging to his torso, her own arms wrapping around his shoulders tightly.

From where she moved, Cetrion had only to turn her head to lay kisses along Raiden's neck and face. She left him with as many blisters and marks as possible, and the sigh of her moans signaled out her second release. She had to squeeze her thighs against Raiden's to finally bring him to orgasm and once she got that she cried out in triumph.

"Very good." Raiden shuddered at the feel of Shinnok's lips brushing against his ear, and twitched when he felt the Elder God lay a kiss just below.

When Cetrion began to move again, Raiden was more than surprised to watch Shinnok stop her.

"Cease, sister." He reached out, laying his hand over her sternum. Shinnok didn't move from where he positioned himself behind Raiden, and that hand digging into the thunder god's cheeks persisted. "If you continue like this you'll kill him. We can't have that, not just yet."

Raiden could feel the way Shinnok smiled. He was pressed up against him, his nose rubbing into his unkempt locks. It was his arms that rocked him, swaying with the Elder God's movement. And it was enough to stall Cetrion's appetite.

"Don't give me that look." Raiden grunted when Shinnok pulled away from him. The god maneuvered around, coming alongside his and Cetrion's tangled forms. "If you can't have Raiden, have me instead. I won't risk breaking so easily." Shinnok tilted his head, brushing his lips across Cetrion's. When he leaned away she leaned in, so he stepped back to make her follow. She did.

Cetrion removed herself from Raiden and fell into Shinnok's arms quickly. Upon her departure every bind securing Raiden slipped away. The thunder god fell to the ground a trembling mess. His lasting aches left by Cetrion and the roots' sudden retreat prevented his body from doing much more than twitching, so he laid there along the ruble and surrounding ruin, watching Cetrion lavish her brother just as she had him.

The two Elder Gods twisted, tangling their limbs, their hands, their lips, their tongues. Cetrion had rolled them until she was on top. Her hips moved, not doing much before Shinnok reacted to her.

Cetrion's haste had her grasping her brother, parting his robes until she found her desire and pulled him into her as quickly as she could. The moment their bodies connected she paused, gasping and trembling. Shinnok laid beneath her in a similar state. His hands splayed, shaking before coming out and laying over her hips. It was by the tug of those grasping hands that moved Cetrion again into a brutal pace.

Cetrion's body curved above Shinnok, rocking into him while he thrust up. She looked absolutely terrifying in her passionate throes. But what disturbed Raiden more than watching the two collide before him was the way he saw Cetrion's hands run down Shinnok's chest, a glow about them that reminded him of the reaction that came when she drained the other immortals. Cetrion was absorbing Shinnok.

A gasp was heard from Shinnok, but it was not one of pain. His wide eyes fluttered as he leaned himself back, rolling his hips into Cetrion, meeting her needy pace with throbbing enthusiasm. Raiden saw how he reached down and took hold of her hands, as if he knew what she was doing. But he didn't push the goddess away, instead he pulled her closer, having her lean over him and lay her breasts against his torso. From there he placed Cetrion's hands across his face, encouraging her previous compulsion.

Shinnok's eyes shut as Cetrion continued to feed, taking in more of his corrupt energies while she moved with him. The more she devoured the quicker she moved until she cried out from the sensations filling her.

Her fluids ran down her thighs, lathering Shinnok's robes, their connection amess with the mix of them. The way she shuddered when Shinnok ejaculated was breathtaking, but alarming. The two continued their entanglement for some time, but when Shinnok slid them around, pushing Cetrion down, his took his turn to run his hands down her body, and feed from all that she was.

There was pain in Cetrion's moaning cries. But she didn't stop Shinnok in his plight, and laid there spread for him to take as much as he wanted of her. It was only when Shinnok's absorbing hands curled, ripping into flesh that Raiden leaned away in startle.

Cetrion's eyes were wide as Shinnok tore into her, but she didn't stop him. Raiden watched the Elder God tear her apart until her physical form was no more. All that remained was her true astral matter and Shinnok looked pleased with that situation.

Physically, Cetrion was beauty incarnate. Celestial, she was an insurmountable cosmic force. Blues and violets moved around her. Galaxies circulated through her energies, sparkling with the purest of lights. But even in her majesty, Raiden noticed the fault lines in her essence, the ones Shinnok tampered with. This breathtaking sight was all the same hideous; nowhere near as vibrantly unique as she once was. Yet none of that deterred Shinnok from approaching her, from ridding himself of his own physical vessel and joining her in magnitude.

Shinnok clung to her, the contact of his touch merged their gravitational currents together until it threatened to overwhelm them both. It’s what forced them apart and what pushed them back together again. They devoured each other, gave nourishment in return, and then took it all back over and over. Neither of the Elder Gods stopped until their very energies bubbled with instability, and even as it did they refused to let go of the other.

Their merging was frightful. Amidst the pained cries and encouraging moans, Raiden saw them melt into one another. For a moment he thought they had become an entirely new being. For a moment, maybe they had.

Shinnok’s reds and greens and golds morphed along with Cetrion’s blues and violets creating something dark like blacks and silvers and golds. The size of their combined signatures nearly engulfed all of Heaven. In that blotting moment Raiden was overshadowed by their frame and as supernova eyes looked down at him, he saw his final end.

He remained, still, accepting. But his wait for this morbid aftermath was for nothing. Before the urge to devour him even crossed the being's mind the form began to break apart. Ripples of exploding energies split the two apart again and they fell away from one another in agony and content.

Shinnok heaved, leaning up onto his arms whilst Cetrion lay a little ways away, trembling in the aftershocks of the experience. It was Shinnok who had been the first to regain his mind from the enslavement of the power-high fog. Their merge had weakened them both, but also amplified their recovery process in the destructive separation. And when Shinnok had finally situated his flaring systems back into a complacent flow he returned his attention toward the thunder god.

Raiden shifted when he saw Shinnok move. The Elder God stood on wobbling legs, but when his stance steadied he began moving toward where Cetrion lay. As soon as he took her up into his arms he simply held her there, cascading endearing touches down her face in unusual patience. The moment she stirred Shinnok leaned down and kissed her. It was after which he began moving again.

Raiden couldn't stop the way his body quaked. Charges pulsed throughout his limbs as he pulled himself back, trying what he could to move away. But his pathetic efforts were ignored. Shinnok knelt down beside him, laying Cetrion down just as close. The moment his arms were free he took in the thunder god to occupy them.

The taste of Shinnok's kiss made Raiden dizzy. His lips sparked with something ill that seeped through Raiden's flesh like an unnatural poison. It had Raiden continuing his struggle, especially when Shinnok finally let him go again only to turn back toward the goddess.

"Up now, sister." Shinnok ran tender fingers down Cetrion's shoulders, stirring her back to cognitive focus. "We're not done yet."

"Shinnok." Cetrion sat up, leaning herself against the Elder God with an affectionate sigh. Shinnok held her for as long as she wanted him to, his hand running down the length of her back while she hummed in approval.

"How wonderful you were." Shinnok rubbed his lips over Cetrion's head. "When we merged it felt as if we were one entity unrestrained. I didn't even want to separate."

Cetrion looked up at him, eyes bright and face morphing with renewed desire over his vocal reminiscence. Her hands rose, running over his chest as a suggestion they do it again. Yet even in all of Shinnok's praise, he denied her.

"Another time." He took up her hands and kissed them. "But perhaps we were a little selfish with our affection. You felt powerful?" Cetrion hummed, nodding her head. "You felt revegetated? You felt transformed?"

"I felt _you_." Cetrion laid her lips along Shinnok's jaw, her body rubbing him again in its reviving passion.

Shinnok pulled Cetrion's gaze up with a nudge of her chin. "And I felt you." They were so close they were breathing the same air, and though their energies drew them back toward one another, they never pressed closer. "Let us not keep our affection between each other, Cetrion."

Though sweet his words, when Shinnok turned to look at Raiden his eyes burned malevolently. Lips curling, the Elder God guided Cetrion's hands down onto Raiden's chest. The very moment they made contact, Cetrion surged her powers into him.

Raiden jerked, his entire body rocked against the force given to him. It hurt, rattling his insides and stretching the skin around where her palms situated. He didn't have time to cry out before she sent another wave of overwhelming power.

Mouth falling open and eyes bulging, Raiden shook from the energies forced onto him. They collided with him, bashing his retained form until his own physical shell began to collapse. Blood dripped out of his nostrils, his ears, and down his lips. He tried to take hold of her wrists and tug them away before she ripped him apart entirely, but his strength was nowhere near enough to do what he needed.

"Stop!" He finally found his voice, but he feared his cries wouldn't be enough. They hadn't been before. "Stop! Please!"

As surprising as it was, Shinnok moved and pushed Cetrion's giving hands away. It was his eyes that looked at the battered thunder god as he wheezed, as his body laid there twitching and unbinding.

"Don't fight it, Raiden. This is the final part." As he said that Shinnok laid his hands on Raiden and pushed his essence into him instead. It overcame him just as Cetrion's might had, and soon enough, Raiden began to fall to pieces.

His skin tore, his muscles snapped, his bones disintegrated. Raiden's physical form vaporized under the godly essence poured over him, and as soon as his astral physique was freed, it was Shinnok and Cetrion who took a hold of him and pushed so close that they began to merge.

These opposing energies didn't mingle gently. They clashed, shoving against each other until one inevitably broke apart against the opposing. After that the victorious matter began to devour the rest, taking the charges into itself until it digested and spewed out new makeup that favored itself as much as possible.

The foreign essence made Raiden sick and his form shook until it threatened to disperse completely. The sheer might these energies were made of crushed his very persona. It had him curling, unable to contain or even naturally circulate these transfusions. He shifted, changed because of this.

His blue and gold essence swirled, morphing into flashing lights and tumbling clouds blackening as the turmoil climbed. They all rose up out of him, lifting into the skies and covering Heaven. Roars rumbled deep within their charged formations until they split open with blinding lights, raining down snapping lightning that tore and burned everything they touched.

The cries of the electrical charges matched Raiden's. The agony over his very substance being taken, eaten and reconstructed was more than he could cope. He couldn't feel himself, yet each echo of anguish pulsed through him as if he were regrowing his own frame by each cell. Tolerating it just wasn't possible, yet Raiden remained wracked in these extremities as his senses mixed with the twisted energies of Shinnok and Cetrion.

As a god, Raiden was his power, and to lose all means of control of it frightened him. His wide gaze only watched in horror as his own might devastated all things around him. Rods sparked out of his very form, striking through stone and metal and anything else stern surrounding. It rendered all things once steady and surviving of the Elder Gods’ clash to dust. The ground underneath, though upturned as it was from the same previous struggles, moved away from his surging charges until it too faded away into dusting mists.

Raiden’s never contained power of this magnitude. And so it terrified him. Given both by Cetrion and Shinnok, Raiden couldn't find a means to contain it within himself. Even with his limiting physical form gone, Raiden couldn't match his will with the strength of it all and therefore these amplified senses pressed out of him, destroying whatever was unfortunate enough to be near or far.

Shinnok and Cetrion stood near, bracing themselves. They kept close to Raiden, constantly transferring more of themselves into him. Their reactions at the thunder god's heightening power was one of shivering fulfillment. Cetrion trembled at the push of the surging quakes while Shinnok smiled wide and proud.

"Marvelous, absolutely marvelous!" Shinnok leaned back, basking in Raiden's expanding new strengths. It rattled his own might, enticing him to rub against such mighty energies and preen at its equal standing. Raiden could feel Shinnok's satisfaction, he could feel his lusts for these outcomes, for him, as if they were his own. And as Raiden's mind tore into pieces over any attempt to comprehend with this transformation he began to slip into these beliefs.

The rise Raiden felt along his core, the one that tickled him near the base of his back was a sensation he felt from Cetrion. She moved against him, moaning his name and her desire for him. Raiden's moan matched hers. Her delight was his, and when her hands came over his abdomen, Raiden took them, bringing them to his mouth and inhaling the powers that concentrated there.

He could feel Shinnok and Cetrion's gaze gleam with exhilaration, and the goddess trembled when Raiden took from her essence, feeding on her because his unbalanced energies needed sustenance, enough to sustain him in this fight until the end of it all. Cetrion never pulled herself away as Raiden took from her, instead she opened herself to him and laid over his quaking form, binding herself to him and all that made him. His merge with her was becoming less painful as long as he became more of her than himself.

His voice lowered from anguished cries and heightened with fulfilled moans, much like Cetrion's. It was she who guided him from the pains of his overexertion and into pathways of shared pleasure. She who taught him to fluctuate the bubbling energies into the right currents so that he could contain it and take his enjoyment from its gain. Raiden's forming frame sung underneath her touch and submitted to her wisdom.

Rising reliefs began to come alongside the pleasures Raiden was feeling as he finally began to pull himself together, but after contentment appeared so too did famishment from all of the effort it took to do so. It turned his instincts to press close to a means of replenishment, of which was Cetrion above him, inside him, around him. He reached out to her, encasing her in his reforming arms. He pulled on her and all that she was so that his pains would go away.

Yet in these receding pangs, Raiden's own might intensified. Too focused was he on the way Cetrion's essence came into him that the mounting charges swirling around him, around them, went unnoticed even as its fury tore further into the grounds below and the skies above. His worry over it sat there in the back of his mind, kept there behind his already heady spirit elevating into uncharted heights, taking on ripple after ripple of electric vigor.

The memories of all the pains vanished as the strength of the very universe coursed through the god. It felt like the dawn of time, like every element moved together and combined in their mighty beginnings. It felt like rebirth.

Fascinated with all the things in and of him, Raiden reached out to those in most similarity to him, those like Cetrion and Shinnok. Just as Cetrion leaned away in sheer thrill from their bout of merges, Raiden reached for her again. He came over her and pressed his newly formed lips to hers, taking every sensation and power associated within that touch. The goddess swooned into him, mirroring his physicality, and allowed him to take what he wanted. She even encouraged his lead in the merge he initiated.

Raiden wasn't experienced with celestial merging, yet Cetrion was patient with him, finding comfort in their mingling essence while Raiden pressed himself into her.

"Raiden," Cetrion sighed his name, her hands running up his back awash with bright markings. He recollected the name, but at the same time he didn't, only feeling the rousing in both Elder Gods the moment it was uttered. It brought him pleasure too, and he wondered that if he said their names they too would shudder as he did.

"Ce . . . trion . . ." It was hard to speak. Raiden couldn't understand why at the moment. But his urge to utter the names of those flowing through him spurred him forward. "Shinnok."

"I'm here." The touch of a hand came down Raiden's neck and then it rose, rubbing along his jaw. The thunder god leaned away from Cetrion, ignoring her displeasure to focus on the pulls he felt from the one deity standing next to him.

On his knees Raiden sat there, looking up at Shinnok who stood tall beside him, his fingers still running the length of his jaw. There was a light in the Elder God's eyes. He looked at Raiden with piqued pride, like an artist finally taking a step back to see his final product. Now he was being judged if he was worth being so titled a master piece.

Raiden never let Shinnok deny or clarify. The passions that might or might not have been his own moved him. He surged forward, winding his arms around the god's neck and kissing him to take from his energies as well.

Their sudden collision shook the area around, but none of it mattered to Raiden nor to Shinnok. The Elder God wrapped himself around the deity pressed against him, returning his eagerness with his own. But he didn't open himself immediately like Cetrion did and Raiden felt frustration flare inside him . . . or was that Cetrion's?

Shinnok smiled against those wanting lips. As he pulled away, Raiden chased. And he wouldn't have stopped hadn't the Elder God leaned away to hold Raiden back at an arm's length. From there he took another moment looking him over, admiring him.

"What do you want, Raiden?"

Ivory brows furrowed. Raiden tried to rush forward, but Shinnok used his might to keep him back. So Raiden fought against the force with his own might. He broke free and it made Shinnok have to physically halt him with splayed hands pressing into his heaving pectorals.

Once again Raiden found his frustration piquing. If he could feel Shinnok then he knew he could feel his own raging desires and he wanted Raiden so Raiden wanted him in return. Why he was denying himself, denying them, he couldn't understand.

The hands over his torso moved, falling down his abdomen and then around his sides, purposely following the glow of his intricate markings. Shinnok's eyes followed their path while Raiden only stared at him, baring their emotions in his sparking eyes.

"Tell me, Raiden." Finally Shinnok looked at Raiden again, his eyes locking with his. "Do you want me?"

"Yes." Raiden thought it was Cetrion who said it, but he was also certain that his lips had just moved, so maybe it had been him.

Shinnok leaned in, his hands sliding around his back and tracing the lines there. "Do you want me?"

"Yes." Raiden watched Shinnok's smile grow. Now he took another step forward. Those hands had fallen, resting along the smooth of his hips.

"Do you want me?" Shinnok had been close enough. His breath fell across Raiden's new skin, and at the contact Raiden lost all sense of the self he had once knew.

It was Raiden who rid them of any more distance. He jumped into his arms. Shinnok caught him easily and let those electrified hands clasp the sides of his head while he rubbed his mouth down the Elder God's face.

"Yes, yes, yes!" And Raiden felt it then, as Shinnok smiled he felt the Elder God open his energies to him for him to feed off of and in return Shinnok dined on Raiden's body.

Their very forms exuded shocks of unspeakable power and when they entangled themselves the grounds moved underneath their touch. But this damaging effect didn't stop Shinnok from laying Raiden down and moving been his legs. It didn't stop him from pressing into him and gasping at the privilege it was to taint him so early and eagerly. But Raiden pulled at him too, rolling his hips up as Shinnok rolled them down, clamping onto the pulsing throb inside him while Shinnok shuddered at the constriction.

Head lulled back, Raiden gasped at the feel of Shinnok's mouth moving over his neck, sinking teeth where he may as he rocked them to the steady rhythm of their pulsing energies. He rose his legs, hooking them behind the Elder God to help tug him closer, deeper. Every reciprocating movement Raiden made seemed to take the Elder God in some form of surprise, but it faded quickly to a responsive thrill. It all had Shinnok grinding into Raiden harder, faster, and he did this until the both of them took what they wanted.

"My beautiful, beautiful storm." Shinnok gasped along Raiden's chest, running his tongue along reddened nipples and down further toward the dip of his sternum. "You'll sit here, with us, forever." His hands dragged down Raiden's tender form and when the thunder god arched, pushing himself more against the body above him, it had Shinnok twitching inside him, shuddering until he began to spill himself in the midst of their connection.

The way their bodies sung in their divine contact only transitioned their souls into pure euphoria. Shinnok throbbed inside Raiden even after his first release, and the feel of his hard warmth had Raiden waiting for more, opening himself for the Elder God to fall into him again, to move in deeper. And when Shinnok followed these wishes, Raiden moaned with enthusiasm that finally began to feel right.

With Shinnok shuddering over him, awash in absolute bliss, Raiden couldn’t move his eyes away, or keep his hands from reaching up and cupping that pleasure-riddled face. Lips parted to pass out a sighing moan when Shinnok once more filled him with his fluids. That was when the Elder God’s bright eyes turned to him.

A few breaths of silence befell them before the god turned and pressed a kiss against Raiden's palm. "And you'll be just like this . . ." Shinnok's eyes never left Raiden nor how he lay submitted beneath him. Even Raiden could feel the way his lips curled against his hand. "Forever."

Something about that notion initially riled some sort of negative emotion but with Shinnok and Cetrion's guidance Raiden was taught to ignore it.


	4. Part 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ya’ll wanted Fujin involved? He’s friggin’ involved!
> 
> Should I have split this chapter? Probably. Did I? No.
> 
> WARNINGS: No rape (yup, that’s a warning), some not-so-surprising-incest, some surprising incest, character deaths, exorcisms, corruption, Fujin being the Avatar, poor and desperate choices, extreme dubious consent, guest appearance from a Titan. Maybe character ooc? Long. Ass. Chapter (it’s over 60 pages TT.TT). Grammatical mistakes (author's ooonly huuuman~).

Returning to life felt as exhausting as leaving it, but lacking strength didn't stop Fujin from laying a solid punch across Argus' jaw.

The strike startled a confusion in the Edenian god, though his wide eyes were the only ones looking at Earthrealm's wind god in such a way. Fujin's newly revived brothers didn't at all bat an eye to what he'd done to their host. In fact, their swirling auras more than encouraged him to continue his assault.

"I had to, Fujin." Argus rubbed his wounded joint. "I was only honoring Raiden's wish."

Fujin snarled, teeth grinding as he stepped forward. His body shook with each step, limbs strained over coming back to life, his knees threatening to buckle under the sudden exertion, but Fujin kept going because the knowledge that his brother had been abandoned tormented him more than aching joints.

"There is no honor in abandoning him to a fate as Shinnok's whore!" Fujin wound his fist back, fully intent to spring it forward, but his intentions were stifled when a large mass came up behind him and put him in an immobile hold.

"Enough!" It was Shao and it didn't take much to detain Fujin. "What good will all this infighting get you? If it hadn't been for Argus then you'd share the same fate as countless other immortals devoured by Shinnok and Cetrion." Fujin hissed when Shao strengthened his squeeze around his shoulder. It was unnecessary given the wind god's current condition but the Outworld deity did so anyway to stomp down any further bout of fight. "Do you think Raiden would have wanted us quarreling like a bunch of adversaries?"

It wasn't the constricting embrace that ceased Fujin's struggle, but the words Shao spoke. They struck his tender heart and Fujin stilled, his body going limp as he remembered his brother's relief in their safety. Shao was right to halt Fujin's advancing animosity, as he was right to lay such voice over this disagreement.

The moment Shao released Fujin, the wind god fell to his knees. His body ached, trying as hard as it could to revive old strengths. But it weakened all over again as he succumbed to grief.

Raiden chose them over himself. Of course he did. Now he was out there somewhere in Shinnok's clutches, right where the bastard wanted him. And Fujin was helpless to change that.

"Your dismay is shared by many across the realms and is unfortunately our fault."

Fujin's moist eyes turned. There, standing in observation was the revived figures of the four Elder Gods. They emitted pity and sympathies that would have comforted him hadn't he remembered their previous failure.

"It's because of you." Fujin narrowed his eyes, standing, standing against the Elder Gods. "You couldn't stop Shinnok and because of that we've seen death."

While many tolerated Fujin's bite in their shame, there were some who stood against his boldness. "Stay your aggressions. We have all taken equal portions in this tragedy."

"Yet you're not the ones who lost a brother!" Fujin had more choice words to say, but the wash of sudden sadness that suddenly overtook the Elder Gods shook him.

"But we have," they said. In their eyes was a haunt that Fujin knew well. "We face the regret of not noticing his madness sooner. Perhaps if we had this atrophy could have been prevented. Now all the realms reverberate from the upheaval."

"What will you do?" Argus looked concerned, as did everyone else. And they should be.

"We must return to Heaven and defeat Shinnok. He will not submit by any other means."

A guttural snort drew everyone back to Shao. The god stood there with his arms crossed and face pulled down into a frown. "No disrespect, but you four didn't fare well last conflict. Excuse me for lacking further faith in a second endeavor."

Fujin blinked in recollection. "It was Earthrealm's jinsei. Shinnok had harbored a piece of it and used it to tilt the odds in his favor."

The Elder Gods looked morbid by the reminder. Their shame ever clear. "Shinnok is powerful enough in his own right. That he used a realm's essence against us was beyond deplorable."

"But he won." Shao rose a brow. "That and he's corrupted Lady Cetrion in the same manner. It would be foolish to try yourselves against them as you are."

"Shao is right." Argus showed respect with a courteous bow. "You're newly revived. Surely it's wiser on your part to recover your dispersed strength first and then formulate a means of Lord Shinnok's demise."

"How can you consider an intermission?" Fujin leaned forward, his tone rising. "If you refuse to act now, then the devastation he's created will spread into other realms. You're really fine with leaving the entire universe to that monster's twisted mercies?"

Fujin didn't care about the irritation spreading across the Elder Gods' faces. "Remember your place, Fujin. As disgraceful as the deeds were that Shinnok has committed, he is still an Elder God. That position alone demands reverence." And he certainly didn't give a damn about watching himself.

"He raped my brother!" Fujin wasn't alone in his upset. His younger brothers stirred, they too daring to hold any form of disrespect for Shinnok and all who claimed he deserved exhortation. "He will get no respect from me. Not after all he's done. And if you continue to stand there in his defense then I retract all honor for the remainder of your kind."

"Not here, Fujin!" Argus was quick to apologize for his guest. He muttered his sincerities to the Elder Gods, offering also the multitude of bows he fell into. Whether it was his sweet words and respectful gestures or their own tolerance, the deities remained still and Fujin unmolested by their offenses.

Perhaps then it was the truth that stayed them all.

"I haven't enough grief yet to repeat what Fujin said, but he's right." Shao sighed, shaking his helm. "The longer it takes you to rebind the more chances our realms lay in wait for Lord Shinnok's probable assault. How can we even begin to defend ourselves, our people, our realms?"

Argus' gaze hardened. This worry weighed heavy on him as well. He looked at the four Elder Gods for that very same answer.

The silence they let pass disturbed everyone present.

"Just what I thought." Shao sighed. He looked troubled by this pending doom, and also infuriated. He never was a god willing to lose in any manner. "Confrontation really is the only means."

"No other force will turn Shinnok away." Even the Elder Gods looked troubled by this reality, but it was one even they couldn't escape.

Argus nodded, already accepting this fate. "Then we'll have to prepare for the storms to come."

"Or we follow Lord Shinnok's lead." Curious eyes once again moved toward Shao. He looked at his fellow gods and then set his eyes on the higher deities among them. "There is a place in my realm where souls collect. It is sacred to the mortals there, and so they travel from all over the realm to lay their dead to rest there. For millennia its potential’s gone unused. Allow me to offer this collection to you. You can use the power to gain what will take too long to return."

"Just as Shinnok had used Earthrealm's jinsei." Fujin meditated on the idea. The reminder of what Shinnok did continued to sting his very soul, especially the resulting outcome from the action, but it was only now with the tables turned on horrible heads that the thought became an acceptable one. His bright eyes fell on Shao. "You'd give them your realm's energies?"

Shao nodded. "What would I do with it? The best I could muster is a measly minute of fight against a supreme deity.” He chuckled, shaking his head at the audacious absurdity of it all. “I’d do the universe no good if I tried, but they are already in the position to do so better." His eyes blazed with an encouraging fire. "Take it as a means to subdue your brother."

It was obvious the Elder Gods still carried the shame of their failure. They firstly stood reluctant to use the might of a realm to aid them in this cosmic plight, but understanding all that would befall the outreach of the realms should they hesitate this amplification made them submit to what needed to be done. They followed Shao back to his realm and in Outworld they dined on the collected souls of the deceased to recover the gaps of their power instantaneously.

The chamber reminded Fujin of the jinsei's cavern, though instead of a beautiful white-blue light illuminating the room an eerie yellow-green faded across everyone's complexion. Skulls and bones lined the walls in grim beauty, a place of absolute finality. Of eternal rest. While it wasn't Fujin’s usual taste, there was something calming about the chamber even as its energies was sucked out by the feeding gods.

Fujin found the sight of the swirling souls mesmerizing. Apparently, so did Shao who stood near.

"Have you ever . . .?" Fujin reached forward, his hand close to the wisps. He didn't push any closer, but a soft gasp passed his lips when a fading apparition of a hand reached out and brushed against his skin. He tingled from the disembodied touch.

"No," came Shao's reply. His eyes moved away from the lights. Fujin could feel his strong gaze on him. "I've never had a need to utilize these energies. Not until now."

Fujin retracted his hand. There was once a time Raiden veered from Earthrealm's jinsei. Shinnok's invasion was the only time Fujin's seen his brother forced to reach for a means of power beside his own.

"It must be nice to not feel threatened." Fujin turned his eyes back toward Shao. There was pity in them. "Relish in it. It won't be long before all the realms fall behind Earthrealm."

Shao stepped closer. Fujin didn't pay attention to the emotions swirling in the Outworld protector's eyes, only how the green lights illuminated their glow in such a paranormally beautiful way. "You doubt the Elder Gods."

Glancing back toward the deities, even Fujin felt their might stirring. It wouldn't be long now before they were ready.

"They've already tolerated so much." His soul fell into dismay again. Remembering all of the tragedies that have befallen him and his realm and his brothers. It became too much, enough to move away any faith he once had in the universe's supreme deities. "If they fail again . . ."

Fujin's downcast eyes rose when he felt hands slide up his arms, resting near his shoulders. The touch was gentle; uncommon for Shao's usual character. When he looked into his eyes he saw the fires of resistance, as well as the fires of something else entirely.

"Then we fight." Shao's grip tightened as his features shifted, but even with his rough demeanor and calloused hands, he never hurt the wind god. "Will we lose? Of course, but our end will be glorious." The cynical response even made the brutish god smile as if he was trying to encourage Fujin to do the same. "It's a fate I wouldn't be opposed to, especially if you and your brethren stood beside me."

Shao's gentle touches moved beyond respectable comfort. It was why Fujin pulled away. And he remained glad that Shao honored his distance and forsook pursuing.

“I pray we both escape such an end.”

Fujin turned away, ignoring everything he’d seen in the passion of Shao’s irises and felt in his suggestive caresses. He garnered his attention toward the Elder Gods. He knew they were peaking. The heightening surges brewing inside them shook the chamber and the entire realm felt their awakening. This upcoming confrontation would determine the fate of the universe: that’s what twisted each immortal's gut.

Even in his previous trauma and all the fright of the future, Fujin moved closer against those thrumming beats. The clarity in his spirit made his intentions known, yet the Elder Gods looked at him with curious eyes, judging if he was worthy to stand so near to them. Whether he was or wasn’t, none had yet to vocalize their disapproval.

"Allow me to accompany you." Fujin felt his brothers immediately take positions behind him. Their souls sung with the same desire. "Allow us to fight alongside you so that we may make amends for our honor, our realm, and our brother."

It had been some time since Fujin fell into a bow before an Elder God, but he did so. His motion moved his younger brothers to follow suit. And it was there they waited the verdict of their request.

The Elder Gods debated this decision too shortly amongst each other. "Your heart is noble, Fujin, and full of strength and will; a condition we hope you keep it as, however we must refuse your request. We cannot risk Shinnok using you and your brethren. He didn't hesitate consuming the other immortals and if the opportunity presented itself we believe he'd do so again. Your valiant intention would only set us back and we can’t misstep, not this time."

Fujin felt his soul churn in upset. The Elder Gods were right, but he couldn't help but oppose them, if only for the sake of his broken heart.

"You refuse me the chance to save my brother." A moist gleam illuminated in the glow of Fujin’ trembling gaze. "While Shinnok dispersed each of you it was Raiden who remained in order to save the immortals left behind. In being their savior he in turn became their martyr. _My_ martyr. I need to do this, I need to _try_. Please, let me."

Fujin’s second denial came as the Elder Gods shook their heads. "There are too many variables that we will not allow Shinnok the means to use." One approached Fujin whilst he was shaking. She smiled pleasantly. There was understanding in her eyes and more than enough sympathy to hold Fujin's gaze. "Don't be ashamed of your position. We will set things right." Reaching forward, she pressed her fingertips against Fujin's forehead. A glow emitted from the point of contact and Fujin's eyes shined.

As she pulled away and took her position next to the other Elder Gods she nodded solemnly. "I leave you with the gift of vision. My omniscience is yours. You may not be granted to journey with us, but with this your presence will remain here." She touched her closing eyes, inclining her head. Fujin never returned the gesture because he hadn’t expected the endowment. Instead he watched on with quiet awe as the Elder Gods left the realm altogether. Watched as they tore back into the heavens and took in the expanse of destruction.

All of the majestic buildings were leveled, abodes standing for millions of years sudden vanished, clues to their demise lay in the crumbled gravel scattered below. Lush flora, exotic fauna, bubbling springs and running brooks, all of it wiped away. There was sadness felt in each observing heart but above all the silence was what disturbed the gods the most and what set them on edge, moving them along one wary step at a time.

Fujin watched them pass through the courtyard gates. These golden pillars were left bent and deformed, an example to what had happened to the realm as a whole. Just inside further quiet abounded. Their attendants, their celestial servants were all nowhere to be found. Though the likelihood of what became of these honored souls was quickly deduced. None of the Elder Gods put effort into searching for them. Fujin wouldn't have either.

The four moved forward, moving with purpose and direction. They came into the high hall. Walls were collapsed, statues toppled, and years of countless collected treasures once on display around remained in utter ruin. However, the few things left unscathed and standing was their individual thrones. It surprised them. As did the presence of the occupant seated amongst the chairs.

"Shinnok."

The tyrant sat in the midst of the circle, nestled in his own throne. He looked at them with a smile that seemed welcoming.

"My brethren. It is good to see you returned." Shinnok then waved at them, motioning that they take their places beside him. It was obvious why the four hesitated.

"You knew we'd return."

Shinnok nodded. "Of course. This is your home. Despite the way your eyes look at me now you should know I had no intention of taking that from you."

The Elder Gods glared. "Yet you would steal our lives."

Shinnok's smile fell away. He sighed, leaning further back in his throne. He looked almost troubled by their response. "Your lives, not your livelihoods. And you were the ones who attacked me. I was just defending myself."

One Elder God stepped forward, the one who gave Fujin her sight. "Defending your crimes. Now you add to them. When will this end, brother?"

Shinnok shifted. His lips twitching. "That's entirely up to you. Don’t let these tensions between us turn into dark grudges. Come home and be at peace. Let us rebuild as we have before. Sit beside me as you once did.” Once again he motioned toward the vacant thrones. His tone truly did seem sincere, but after all he’s done such honesty was unbecoming of the Elder God.

“You’re asking that we turn our eyes away from the atrocities you’ve caused.”

Shinnok smiled again, his head tilting. “You say this as if I’m the only one who’s ever caused such travesty. How very hypocritical of you.” The tension rose again, it passed the silent pause roughly and made Shinnok shift forward on his seat. His smile fell. “Fine then, stand there, you may keep your distance, but I will keep all I’ve gained. I relinquish nothing to your demands.”

"Enough! You will cease these dark ambitions or you will face our wrath."

“And you will face mine if you raise one hand against him!” All eyes turned to see Cetrion descend on a throne of fiery roots. Her eyes burned. Her aura threatened.

"Sister? What has become of you?" The gods sounded horrified. They were horrified. They hadn’t seen the goddess’s dark transformation as Fujin and his brothers had. They hadn’t been there when she threw off all mercy and valiance for rage and pleasure.

Cetrion moved to stand beside Shinnok. Her presence and stance spoke of her allegiances. And it all enraged the other Elder Gods who turned accusing eyes back toward Shinnok. "You would corrupt one of your own?"

Shinnok's eyes fell on Cetrion in some sort of twisted affection. There was a danger in those same eyes when they turned back toward the other present Elder Gods.

"There you go again; accusing me of such lowly acts. I only gifted my sister with power she deserves, power we _all_ deserve. Besides . . ." Shinnok tilted his head, his gaze roaming over the four knowingly. "It looks like I'm not the only one feeding off a realm's energies."

Fists clenched. All four took a threatening step forward. "We do what we must for order and justice. And if that means destroying you then so be it."

That exclamation made Shinnok stand. "Then I shall do the same."

Cetrion's binds that rose up and wound around the other Elder Gods were broken immediately. Yet it was her who shielded Shinnok from the attack aimed right at him. And it took a sizable portion of her flora to quell the energy blast. Though the gods didn't wait for her to recover. They lunged forward, two toward Cetrion and two toward Shinnok.

Their forms collided, blows were thrown and met. Cetrion hurled fires hotter than supernovas toward her fellow gods, and Shinnok struck back with molded limbs torn from decapitated buildings. Once again they demolished Heaven.

Fujin held his breath, his lips parting as he beheld it all. The Elder Gods shook the atmosphere around them. The very realm began to collapse beneath them. Worry over the outcome nestled at the base of Fujin’s spine, but their struggles had yet to tip in either direction.

Then Cetrion let out a cry. The two struggling against her enacted a hold on her. She shook against it but they merely slammed her to the ground, pressing her down so hard that the grounds quaked and cratered around her. It was her distress that lured Shinnok.

He came out of the debris, sending tons of ruin toward the two who held the goddess down. They were forced to back away, but in their retreat they pivoted, coming to stand beside the others. Now four stood against one. Shinnok was finally surrounded.

Narrowed eyes glared at his oppressors. There was tension in his stance and aggression scrawled on his face, but Shinnok stood tall and reluctant regardless of his predicament. "Come now, is this really fair?"

"Surrender!" The Elder Gods demanded, circling their fallen brother. "Don't make us erase your existence."

Shinnok sneered. "You couldn't if you tried." His eyes flashed with an energy. The jinsei. "And I will not surrender what is mine!"

The Elder Gods braced for Shinnok's retaliation, not another's. The blow came from seemingly nowhere, zipping amongst them and then exploding from close proximity. They fell back in shock and pain. Their wide eyes descended from surprise to horror much in the same way Fujin’s did.

There, standing before Shinnok like an attentive guard was Raiden. His eyes were bright with a vibrant red, his frame cascaded bolts of similar hue while he himself stood donned like the night, with precious golds twining down in rope and stitch. Seeing him standing, whole, and seemingly unharmed took Fujin’s breath away. There was a part of him, a subconscious compulsion, that wanted to immediately breathe his relief at the mere sight of his brother, but something held him back—it was the way Raiden stood with his back to Shinnok and narrowed gaze on the four Elder Gods standing opposed, It was the way his fists clenched, the way charges slithered over his body in unnatural patterns, ones Fujin’s never known. It was like he was looking at his brother but at the same time he wasn’t.

When Cetrion recovered and returned to her position next to Shinnok, none paid her attention. All eyes were on Raiden, his mere presence stalling the other Elder Gods’ will to continue their struggle. Their bodies still twitched from the effects of his previous attack, and that alone swelled caution amongst their ranks. Raiden had always been a god of power, but one nowhere near in comparison to beings such as them, yet they hurt.

“This collision . . .” The Elder Gods tried to shake off the thrumming pains, but it proved far too lasting. And it all alarmed them. Their eyes narrowed, studying Raiden, taking him in, taking in his surging essence. Whatever it was they felt horrified their fields and immediately made them raise their defenses. “By the One! Shinnok . . . what have you done?”

“I’ve evened the odds,” Shinnok said. He came to stand beside Raiden, and Fujin felt a sickness rise when he noticed his brother hadn’t so much as moved away. “Now there are seven.”

The glow in Raiden’s eyes was identical to the shine in Shinnok and Cetrion’s. It only brightened when he lunged forward, the other two close behind him. Their clash unraveled Heaven’s foundations. The realm began to fall in on itself.

Even with their powers restored, the four Elder Gods unfortunately matched blows with the others, though it was Raiden’s participation in the fight that hesitated them too much. It gave Shinnok and Cetrion the opportunity to strangle their brethren, and while they decimated all they could, Raiden shook the grounds below and skies above. Black clouds clogged the light, rumbling and roaring. The lightning that fell left nothing standing and every charge hailing down was directed at the resisting gods.

Fujin trembled as he watched Raiden sear into the Elder Gods. As he watched him charge them, strike them with his fists, his knees, his heels. He pushed them back and broke them apart just like Shinnok and Cetrion did.

It was more than the wind god could take. He choked out a cry, his eyes clenching shut while his knees buckled and he fell to the ground in grief. His brothers were there to lay hands on him and there were so many questions, but they felt it, they all had. Every realm knew the second fight resulted in another victory for the mad Elder God.

“How?” Fujin felt Jiten’s warm hands on him, tugging at him with trembling fingers. “How did they . . .?”

Fujin opened his eyes and looked into the faces of his disappointed brethren. Just beyond stood Shao and Argus. They were quiet and understanding during this grim outcome, but he knew they too longed to know what Fujin had seen. How? How could he tell them? How could he look at them once they knew?

His bottom lip quivered just the slightest. Fujin had to clench his jaw to keep himself together after witnesses such damnation. His heart fell to places he couldn’t reach and for a moment he simply sat in pitiful silence.

“Raiden . . .” He felt his brothers perk up the moment he mentioned their brother’ name. Their energies brushed his in encouragement, pushing him to continue. They too wanted to know what became of their eldest. “He was there . . .”

“He lives,” Fujin heard Suiten say with a sighing relief and all he wanted to do was come alongside him in that same alleviation, but he couldn’t.

Fujin finally looked back at his brothers. He even glanced toward the two protectors just beyond. “He fought them. He stood beside Shinnok and Cetrion and fought against the others.”

Argus gasped in the background. Shao remained silent, but his face showed the pains of rising trouble.

“No.” Katen was shaking. He leaned back, looking at Fujin as if he wanted to believe he was lying to him. “No, you saw wrong. It couldn’t be. Not Raiden. He would nev . . . Fujin, you saw someone else.”

There was as much pain in Fujin’s eyes as was in his brothers. They didn’t want to believe this possibility as much as he didn’t. Yet he couldn’t unsee what he had witnessed.

“They did something to him,” Fujin said. He was sure of it. His brow furrowed and face scrunched in his attempt to try to figure out what. “He bleeds red and he moves as if he’s trying to rip the realm to pieces.”

“How could he have stood against them?” Argus took a step forward. “Fujin, it’s just not possible, no matter how strong Raiden once was.”

Fujin’s fists clenched, his gut churning in agony. “He’s been elevated. I don’t understand it and I can’t explain it, but he stood against them and fought with them with equal might as if he were an Elder God himself.”

Horror washed across Argus as well as everyone else present. Two rogue Elder Gods was devastating enough, but _three_? Those numbers were damning.

“That’s . . . impossible . . .” Even as Argus voiced his disagreement a rising upset began to trouble his very spirit over this revelation.

“I know what I saw!” Fujin clenched his teeth, hissing before closing his eyes, trying as hard as he could to just shut the world off. This reality was a mess, one that couldn’t be real. The absolute nightmare of it all rippled across the realms and soon enough the disruptive turmoil created chaos.

“Then . . .” Argus huffed, trying to mask his fear with frustration. “Then what are we going to do? What can we do?”

Nothing. Who were they to do anything? None were on a tier anywhere near to the likes of Shinnok and Cetrion. And Raiden.

Shao’s loud sigh turned eyes toward him. He was as horrified as the others, but he contained his dismay over the situation well. His ability to exude control over the fright in his spirit was an envious trait. In times such as this, many would turn to him for his stability. And there he stood tall and proud like he usually did, like he would when the end came, and oddly enough it struck a strange comfort in the present gods.

His golden eyes looked at them. “There’s only one thing we’re able to do: choose how we die.” He tilted his chin up. “Even if it’s for a short time, I’ll ensure Outworld shakes the universe in its destruction.” He then nodded to Argus. “And I would see Edenia do the same.”

As bold and noble the vision Shao had, it was clear Argus thought differently. He’d always been a passive yet charismatic god, reserved in more things than Raiden had been but sociable to the point his realm became a popular recess for many. It was why the other protectors got along with him, and why most leaned away from those like Shao. But not today, today it was Argus who tugged at the Outworld protector’s strength, shallow or not.

Visions of an end, their end. How did Fujin envision his? His darkening eyes looked at his brothers, all just as aggrieved as he. But it was them, they whom he wanted to spend his final moments with—and Raiden.

Even with images of such an end it strung Fujin thin, upsetting him more than finding any sort of comfort in it. So he closed his eyes, trying as hard as he could to fall away from this plane of existence. He wanted to be back on Earthrealm, at the Sky Temple. He wanted to maintain poses, meditate, spar, and glide along the breezes. What Fujin wanted most was to stand in line with his brothers and move with them until they synchronized flawlessly. Those moments had always been beautiful, especially as Raiden orchestrated it all.

Gods, he missed Raiden. His heart felt as if something tight had it and the grasp squeezed and squeezed until he bled every possible emotion he contained. And more.

Fujin didn't want to fade away like this but with how he felt it was as if he was ready to do just that. The hurt inside him was unbearable, but something he inevitably had to force down. The sight of his traumatized brothers demanded it. It was his duty to lead them now, even out of this darkest part of their existence. But he wondered if he was strong enough to lead himself out of those shadows as well.

Heartbreak wasn’t something divine deities often dealt with and when they did it was potent. Its effect immobilized them for some time. Fujin let his brothers grieve. In turn he let himself, grateful for Argus’ companionship and Shao’s commendations.

There were others that came. Deities from around the universe moved toward Outworld where Shao remained strong among the public. But as he turned away from the needy eyes he schemed his realm’s final fight, one such devise was a self-inflicted end. Shao was a proud god, he’d never allow the likes of any other—Elder God or not—to take what had been his since the dawn of time. If his realm was going to meet its end then it would by him.

“This is connected throughout the entire system of the realm, like stretching veins.” Fujin sat in the green glow of the Soul Chamber listening to Shao explain his recent projects. The Outworlder moved along the skeletal architecture, his nails dragging along bone and marrow. Fujin could see he was disappointed over the way the universe shifted but more so tired. Tired of keeping face for all those too weak to stand on their own feet. Outworld was overcrowded, and Shao’s own palace clustered with suckling gods trying to mimic Shao’s mighty persona. “For as long as it’s existed it’s been connected to the very binds that hold Outworld’s fabric makeup. If one point implodes the others will follow in chain reaction. It’s what I’ll use when the time comes.”

Situated in a seated position, Fujin levitated on gentle winds. His hair fluttered, his eyes turning away from the swirl of a billion souls to look at their keeper. “Do you plan to let your people know of your intentions? It would be gracious to warn them before the end.”

Shao sighed. He looked weary, especially those eyes that looked back at the god of wind. “It is more so that I don’t. Should I then it’s likely only to cause mass hysteria. You’d be surprised how hard mortals fight their inevitable ends, and as futile as it always is their souls would forever be restless, and that is something I cannot allow. Even if I must keep these truths from them, I would see that they all pass peacefully.”

“What of your off-world guests?” Fujin thought of his own desired end again, the one with his brothers. It certainly didn’t involve an environment liken to Outworld’s soul explosion. He’d be damned if he let Shao end his family. “Will you at least give them a choice before you collapse the realm?”

Fujin ensured his eyes glowed with threat. From Shao’s responding silence, he hoped he got it across. Sighing, he straightened, letting his winds lift him into a standing position before he offered Outworld’s protector closer companionship. He stepped beside him, his eyes running back down the length of the chamber.

“You know there has yet to be any sign of threat. Perhaps your plans should find form of cessation until anything further appears.” Fujin shifted his jaw. His counsel always leaned passively, even now with the realms flipped upside down with anxiety he found the logic of active annihilation useless—unless the perceived threats came. But none had. All had been quiet in Heaven and the two realms Shinnok had taken over. Expected invasions never came, and neither did the appearance of their masters. It was strange as well as unsettling. Yet it gave needed time for the realms to prepare for the worst.

Fujin still believed this interval would end. Shinnok revealed himself a greedy Elder God. It wasn’t possible for him to find satisfaction and peace in all he’d currently taken. No, he’d want more eventually. But as of late that eventually passed into curious minds wondering if it’d ever be.

So Fujin let Shao mull over his spoken advice, hoping he might consider seeking some form of momentary rest from his constant attentiveness. Not once had Shao put his guard down. Like Argus he was among the few who stood taught, ready for the pendulum to drop. It would, they all knew it, but this lapse of nothingness, of seeming normality was throwing them off and only rising unnecessary stresses.

Shao sighed. His weariness was growing, especially in the way he looked back at Fujin. “I appreciate your words, but I know the moment I yield to such desires I’ll find myself unprepared for the approaching storm.”

“I’d say you’re more prepared than most.” Fujin gave him a look before turning his gaze back toward the souls. It reminded him of his own people, the saurians. Too many had been killed in the rage of Shinnok’s invasion. He and his brothers, and Raiden, tried so hard to protect them. In the end there was no other choice but to move them off realm. Failing to save them wounded Fujin and those left, another shame that piled along with his others. 

Shao shifted beside Fujin. He heaved his wearies as much as Fujin clung to them. “Don’t think of me as some tyrant, Fujin. I do what I must for my realm and the people that live here. If I were to take on any form of selfishness then it’d only to be to wander through the Living Forest aimlessly, to hunt through the Kuatan Jungle for the most ferocious of creatures, to rattle Kytinn hives in Amyek, and jump from the heights of the Wasteland canyons. These luxuries I diverge from for the sake of readiness.”

All of Shao's locational reminiscences pulled Fujin back to Earthrealm and its endless plains where Fujin would glide over on cloudy days, it's rolling beaches that would creep up his calves as soon as the tides rose, it's dense forests with trunks as thick as huts and secret abodes up in their branches. Then there were its mountains, peaking so high that it was as if they could reach Heaven itself. As close as it always seemed Fujin understood why Raiden wanted their temple built up there. But their heaven was gone, torn apart by unholy crusades.

It made Fujin wonder what the realm was now. He's heard about the darkness from the saurians, as well as oni immigration, but other than that he didn't know. There wasn't anyone else left in the realm who could provide further insight. And that which he needed to know the most was the whereabouts of his brother.

Despite coming to terms with all that had taken place, Fujin knew he had to seek Raiden out. The officiation of omniscient vision couldn't stabilize his soul. He needed to see him with his own eyes and feel him with his own hands to ensure that all this madness really existed beyond his mind.

He'd been so deep into these fantasies that were once realities that his face shifted at the longing. It was that bittersweet expression that turned Shao's eyes back to him. There was a pleasant gleam in them.

"You're thinking of your realm, aren't you?"

Fujin blinked. As he looked at Shao the Outworld god offered him silent consolation.

"Earthrealm was beautiful. A lot of protectors made sizable efforts to shape their own realms like so, and I admit I was tempted more than once to follow that trend," Shao said. He was smiling. "I always intended to visit but never made the time to plan for such a trip. Now I realize how I squandered the opportunity."

Fujin couldn't help but offer a soft smile of his own at Shao's complimenting words. "Earthrealm truly was wonderful. It was an honor to keep it.” Even with the memories of Earthrealm’s allure and fineries, it brought Fujin’s soul back into the dismay over having lost it, lost is all. “I miss it."

Shao's smile faded as his gaze sharpened. "Do you still . . .?"

Fujin looked down at his hands. He clenched them. Winds wound around his arms, stopping at the wrist. He nodded at his and Shao's suspicion. "I am still connected to it. Outworld, Edenia; none allow me my full strength."

Though it wasn't anything another realm's deity should concern themselves with, Shao took a step closer, saying, "We could change that. The other Elder Gods escaped Shinnok. Even now they're out there licking their wounds. They bestowed our connection to the realms, surely it's in their power to rewrite it. Outworld would be honored to have a god of the winds on its roster."

Fujin couldn't help but smile again. His brow arched as he looked at Shao lightly. "Would it, or would you?"

Shao hadn't responded. Fujin hasn't believed he'd ever seen the bravado god stammer before. It made him chuckle.

"There's no need." Fujin turned away from Shao and away from the calm atmosphere. It wasn't right that he could fall into it, not with such travesties still present, hanging like a decaying corpse. "I don't intend to be severed from Earthrealm."

"Then what do you intend?"

Fujin sighed. He'd been asking himself that for some time. He'd made up his mind, but yet still questioned his decision. Maybe if he told someone it would solidify his path.

Twisting back around, Fujin met Shao's questioning look. There was surprising worry in that gaze. "I will return to Earthrealm."

Shao didn't like his decision. Neither did Fujin. "You can't."

"I must." Fujin couldn't let anyone else convince him otherwise, not when he, himself, almost did. "I have to find Raiden. I have to see . . ."

"But you have seen," Shao insisted, stepping closer, making the wind god look at him, listen to him. "What is this for? Do you doubt the sight the Elder Gods gave you? Do you expect to find your brother unscathed by Shinnok's corruption? We both saw what he did to Lady Cetrion. I don't doubt he's done the same to Raiden."

"He's my brother," Fujin said, his voice quieted after that. His heart thrummed along to the sadness colliding inside him. Even as he met Shao's livid gaze he couldn't help but offer an apologetic smile for all the questionable choices he was going to make. "I can't abandon him."

The space around them was quiet. Fujin was glad Shao didn't resist further. He may have had a chance at convincing him otherwise if he possessed a little more suavity.

With Shao's relenting sigh he asked, "Will your brothers go as well?"

Fujin stiffened. His three younger brothers too had been on his heart. "No. I humbly ask that you continue to treat them as good as you have."

Shao narrowed his gaze. "That seems a little selfish on your part. I thought you weren't one to keep secrets."

Fujin’s brow furrowed at the comment and its truth. "I'm the eldest. It is my duty to keep them safe."

"As it was Raiden's."

That statement made Fujin pause. He knew. He had always known that he and his brothers were Raiden's dearest treasures. Ensuring that they thrived and were secured from harm was his utmost duty aside from governing Earthrealm. As the next in line, Fujin understood his plights.

No matter what condition he was in, Fujin knew Raiden wanted them free of strife. However even though he understood this it did not mean he had to accept it.

"I have to do this. I have to see if he's still there."

"And if he's no longer the Raiden you knew?"

Fujin didn't think such a thing was even plausible. He'd been with Raiden since the beginning. A time, a place where the god who always stood beside him as protector and brother suddenly wasn't; It just didn't seem real. Though . . . a lot of reality was already bending to the impossible.

He didn't want to think about it. Fujin made up his mind and would not be moved from it. He bent himself, offering Shao a polite bow. "Your kindness and companionship has been of great comfort. I cannot thank you enough. But if you would grant me one last request while I stand as your guest then it is that you don't reveal where I've gone to my brothers."

There was too much disapproval in Shao's eyes. Fujin wondered if he would honor his wish. If his brothers knew they would surely try to stop him, or worse, go with him. He couldn't have that.

Finally, Shao responded. "It isn't my place to tell them." It was strange to see a curl to his lips and a mischievous twinkle glint across his eyes. "Though I wonder what I get for withholding such information." It was clear Shao was trying to wave away the severity of the situation, all to make it seem everything would turn out just fine. But neither party was certain of that. In fact Fujin was certain they both were in the same mind that further regret would come of this, but Shao’s response still brought out a soft smile from the wind god.

So Fujin wasn’t expecting Shao to willingly agree to keep his departure from his brothers, nor was he expecting to be goaded into giving something in return for the compliance, but he didn’t at all mind whisking himself forward and pressing his lips softly to Shao’s only because Shao suddenly became the surprised one.

“Thank you.” Fujin pulled away as quickly as he moved in. He left on a gust of wind, one that took him from Outworld into Earthrealm.

From the moment Fujin set foot on earth he immediately felt something was wrong. His bright eyes roamed over the atmosphere, it was dark and illuminated red in tint. Trees bent and twisted in malformed shapes, waters rippled like an inky texture, and the dirt below was loose as if it lost all nutrients. This wasn’t the Earthrealm he once remembered.

Looking down at his palms, Fujin wiggled his fingers. He could feel his power restored under the sacred bind that sewed him to the realm, but he also felt something just underneath. It was in the very currents of Earthrealm, the ones he knew by heart. They were twisted, the currents deformed and aggravated. It was like an illness that the realm struggled to expel, but it was in the deep of the fever and it churned in agony—just as everything else connected to it did.

A noise behind had Fujin twirling around, his arms raised and legs planted soundly. Out of the darkness of crooked trees came creatures he’s never seen on Earthrealm. It was because they weren’t from that realm, but one much darker and dangerous.

Oni.

The winds picked up. Fujin’s eyes narrowed as the group approached him. “Halt your approach! If you come closer I will exercise my right to defend myself.”

“Lord Fujin.”

A smaller oni pushed forward, coming to stand in front of the others. Fujin recognized him. He was a close henchman of Shinnok’s; Quan Chi.

Quan Chi bent forward in a bow. He looked at him with dark eyes and a strangely pleasant expression. “We’ve shown you no aggression. Threats of violence are unbecoming of you. It is our duty, you see, to investigate every off-world activity.”

Fujin’s lips continued to twitch downward. Shifting, Fujin pushed himself off the ground in a displaying gust. There he levitated with glaring eyes. “Off-world? I am still this realm’s god. That you would dare treat me like some unregistered foreigner infuriates me.” Another threatening gust pulsed from the deity, pushing into the opposing forces just enough to make them rethink any planned assaults.

While Fujin held no love for the oni race, especially one such as Quan Chi, he was faintly glad he was among the louts. Being the only oni with the capability to rationally think helped avoid harmful confrontation.

“At ease.” Quan Chi rose his hand to stay the twitching oni behind him. He looked at Fujin again, silently. After a moment he shifted straighter. “Be it that there lingers still a connection to Earthrealm, you are not its master and if you would submit to our company then I would be honored to take you before him.”

Shinnok. He was the last person Fujin wanted to see, but he knew there was no way around it. Unfortunately, he was prepared for this meeting, expecting that should he come before the Elder God there was a chance he’d find his brother.

Relenting, Fujin touched ground again. He yielded to Quan Chi and his company, allowing them to escort him to Shinnok’s fortress. It was a towering structure, made of dark obsidian. Carved ghouls wound around pillars, holding them up with their monstrous arms, and each level revealed another threatening creature mounted along balconies, twitching, prepared in guarded stances. And up from the jagged rooftops was a rising light. It was the jinsei and the sight of it made Fujin as ill as it looked.

The mere sight of it all had Fujin pause. The courtyard was littered with oni, formed in uneven platoons that moved across the grounds like sniffing dogs. They looked at him as he came closer toward the gates, and it was Quan Chi whose proximity held them at bay.

“Inside, Lord Fujin. My master awaits you.” Fujin turned toward the oni just as he dared brush his hand against his arm in a motion to move him. A silent warning made Quan Chi retreat to a safer distance and with him there Fujin continued.

Inside was not much different than outside. The ceiling was high and the walls littered with treasures both new and old. Golden bowls situated on stands lined the pathway, fires rose out of their mouths to illuminate the room. From these lights Fujin saw all of the hanging tapestries and crooked furniture, as well as the dark faces present.

The Brotherhood of the Shadow lined the room, covered in robes, muttering chants and nodding into bows. It wasn’t for Fujin but for the one seated on an elevated throne just ahead of them.

Shinnok smiled at him. “Fujin, what a surprise it is to see you. I must admit I hadn’t expected to see you here . . . so soon.”

Fujin watched his company depart from him. He was left alone, standing before the Elder God. With clenched fists, Fujin refused any form of an honorary bow. He wasn’t there to offer respect. “I tarried too long. May Earthrealm forgive my absence.”

Shinnok shifted on his throne, leaning forward. “All is forgiven. Earthrealm’s changed quite a bit since you were last here, now I am quite interested in hearing what you think of it.”

Fujin gripped his fists tighter. His lips twitched. “Do you want an honest review?”

“Fujin.” There, off to the side came movement. It twined and careened until Cetrion came into view. She sat nestled on a throne of fiery roots and she moved until she was deposited just beside Shinnok and his throne. “You’ve returned. It is good to see you. Your brother has missed you.”

Fujin’s heart clenched inside his chest. There was a pull that moved him toward Cetrion and any knowledge she had on his sibling.

“Is Raiden here?” All offenses of what had been done to Earthrealm remained, but Fujin sealed them away for another time so that he could focus on what he’d come there to do—and that was to find Raiden.

Cetrion nodded. “Of course. His place is beside us. Shall I call him for you?”

Fujin didn’t need to reply for Cetrion to send out her essence to attract the thunder god. And it made Fujin despise her for it, as well as himself. There he stood as brother when he couldn’t so much as find Raiden much less call out to him as he once had. It brought his spirit down further, especially as he watched Cetrion of all deities lure his brother into the room.

Thunder rumbled, shaking any loose objects situated around the room. Then came the lights. Flashes of colors filled the room until all that remained was the red. Lightning came down, and from it formed a face Fujin had been yearning to see.

There stood Raiden, dressed in black. He wore plates of gold over his shoulders and chest, and it descended further, stitched into the very intricacies of his robes. His stance was strong and the power he emitted took Fujin’s breath away. He’s never felt his brother like this in the entirety of his existence.

“Raiden . . .” Fujin wasn’t even certain he spoke, his voice was low, gasping. His eyes wide as red orbs looked back at him with the might of a supreme being.

With a blink, Raiden relaxed his stance. He took a step closer to Fujin. “Brother?”

Fujin couldn’t resist rushing toward him and throwing himself to his knees. “Brother, it’s me! Forgive me for being away for so long!” He looked back up into Raiden’s face. It was the face of his brother, but there was still something about it Fujin couldn’t recognize. It didn’t feel right at all, this unfamiliarity disturbed Fujin even though he tried so hard to push it back for the sake of trying to find positivity in this reunion.

A smile turned Raiden’s features as he knelt down to reach out and touch the wind god. “Fujin . . .” The touch of Raiden’s hand sent shockwaves through Fujin’s arm, up along his neck and then down into his core. It quickened his heart, making him stammer for a moment as his fluttering eyes tried to take in this new energy. Out of reaction he wanted to jolt away, but Fujin remained, trying to find comfort in the proximity and his brother’s touch. “I’m so relieved you’re here.” Those strong hands rose, brushing over Fujin’s face. “Where are the others?”

Pulling away, Fujin stood. “I had them stay. They are still recovering after everything that happened.” He paid close attention to Raiden then, trying to see if he pertained any recollection from the statement. Did he? Did Raiden even remember their deaths?

Raiden stood there for a moment. His face neutral, void of any emotion. When he shifted he still told Fujin nothing from his expression. “I am glad to know they are well, as I am that you are here with me.”

Fujin had so much to say, so much more to relay to Raiden specifically, but his words stalled and Shinnok took this opportune pause to say—

“This reunion moves me. Let us honor Fujin’s return with a feast.” Shinnok gave Cetrion a look who in turn moved toward the oni with demands.

Fujin didn’t take his eyes off Raiden, even as servants rushed into the room to set up tables of delectables, all situated atop priceless dishes. Wines were poured and seats offered. As Fujin sat down he watched Raiden take a seat next to Shinnok who settled next to Cetrion. They sat across from him, so close and yet so far away. From there it was as if Fujin was a mere mortal, their might overshadowed the expanse of the room and entirety of the palace, even Earthrealm’s essence sung with the spiking surges of their power.

It really was true. Raiden’s been transformed into an Elder God.

“Something troubles you.” Fujin looked away from the dishes laid out before him and up at one of his hosts. Cetrion. She was beautiful and pristine where she sat, casually taking in the luxuries offered to her. Her smile was pleasant and courteous yet Fujin did not feel right in her presence. “Are you here to shame us with your ill spirit?”

“I try not to.” Fujin’s gaze fell toward Raiden who was watching him as well over the lip of his goblet, but then Fujin’s eyes fell again, back to his plate, back to his own inadequacies. “All of these changes will take some time getting used to . . .”

“We are patient.” Cetrion swallowed down a round fruit, his eyes still on Fujin. “We can tolerate your lagging adaption.”

A hard breath passed out of Fujin’s nostrils. His hands clasped together in his lap. He hated how they sounded so accustomed this madness. It made him want to vomit, and it was that feeling he got each time he glanced back up at the three, at Raiden.

“You will need to learn, Fujin,” came Shinnok’s batting tone. The Elder God was leaning over to grab at the roasts. The moment he snapped a leg off he leaned back and sank his teeth into the flesh. He didn’t so much as look at the one he addressed. “Your oath to this realm still calls for fulfillment. As do those of yours brothers. This is your home, no matter how it’s shaped, your place is here.” When Shinnok looked at Fujin, the wind god saw the expectance in his eyes, as if the Elder God looked at one of his minions to give orders. Fujin let the fires of rebellion grow in his chest.

There were words, ones Fujin didn’t need to say, but wanted to. He would have done so hadn’t more servants came in to offer the next course.

“Great gods! We present the tributes!” In came the oni, marching in lines. The rattle of chains turned Fujin’s attention back toward them. Turning in his seat, he watched with the others as the Netherrealm spawn pulled in peoples gathered from various realms, and even a few saurians who had been unfortunate enough to prolong their exodus from Earthrealm.

Fujin furrowed his brows in confusion, watching as Shinnok stood, motioning the first one closer. Quan Chi had been present, goading the oni to approach their master with the chained persons.

“Their souls are pure and bright,” Quan Chi explained. “They will that you take pleasure in their untainted energies.” He bowed, though standing there in front of quivering slaves didn’t at all look remotely honoring. Fujin tensed when Shinnok reached out for the first one.

Eyes widened when he watched the Elder God devour the presented soul. The person screamed in undiluted horror as their life was stripped from them and absorbed into the mighty deity. The others only stirred with further discourse as they watched their fellow be devoured.

Cetrion came alongside her brother. She leaned forward toward the one presented for her. Reaching out, she rubbed the frightened slave along their face. Her smile didn’t stop the tears that fell, nor the sobs that choked from their hoarse throat while she too dined on their soul.

What horrified Fujin the most was watching Raiden take up position alongside the two and accept the offerings. Raiden took in the souls before him with eagerness and as Fujin watched him eat a saurian he couldn’t hold back his fury any longer.

“STOP!” A torrent of heavy winds slammed into the table, flipping it until it fell down into the oni, cutting them off and the ones next in line to come before the Elder Gods. Jumping, Fujin landed atop the overturned piece of wood, his arms out in threat and eyes narrowed in challenge. “Stop this immediately!”

Shinnok’s face contorted in displeasure. “You forget your place, wind god. I am the host and you nothing but a guest. Your ill-contempt for manners offends me.”

“I am guardian of the realm, sworn to protect the mortals. I am well within my right!” Fujin grit his teeth. Picking a fight with the likes of Shinnok would not bode well, especially if Cetrion so stood beside him—and Raiden.

“Enough of this, Fujin!” Glaring eyes now blinked in surprise at Raiden. He was tense with upset, with anger toward Fujin. “Have you lost all sense of respect? They are tribute. You argue against change but you are the one who’s changed if you hold the audacity to insult an Elder God by diverting such offerings.”

Fujin wavered as the atmosphere sizzled with Raiden’s power. It made him lightheaded, and weak-kneed. Yet he fought off those effects. Unfortunately he couldn’t battle the breaking of his heart.

“At ease, Raiden. You must learn to control that temper. Your brother has a regressive mind, he cannot help his ignorance.” Cetrion came close, reaching out and running her hand down the thunder god’s sparking arm. As her fingers slid along his clenched fists the contact loosened his grip. She enticed him to turn his rage away from his brother and as soon as his ruby gaze looked at Cetrion the goddess smiled, brushing down caresses along his jaw. “There.” She cupped his face and offered him a kiss. Fujin felt himself tremble as he watched Raiden kiss back.

The hurt in his eyes hadn’t been hidden well, even as he turned them back toward Shinnok who stood poised and uncaring. After a moment of glaring at Fujin, the Elder God waved his hand and said, “Out. So that the servants may clean up the mess you made.”

Fujin wanted to refuse the demand. He wanted to remain, ever watching Shinnok and Cetrion. And to linger in the presence of his brother. But his twisting heart pulled him back and he left the great hall, falling into the crossing passages that darkened the deeper he went.

It was at a window he stopped, bathed in the red lights of the sky, Fujin caught himself. Leaning over, his hands laid against the sill while his body trembled. Gusts flittered through the passages, taking any lit flame with it as it went. Now all was dark save for the sickly red cascading through the window and over Fujin himself.

It was easier to cry in the solitude of the dark. Yet Fujin’s tears were warred with the anger setting his bones on fire. Witnessing his brother’s changed might and then taking his harsh words felt so surreal. Raiden had berated him as Fujin was nothing more than an acquainted lesser god at best and a mere mortal at worst. He hadn’t even looked at him with the familiarity of relation and then he stood against him with threats to maim. That’s what hurt Fujin the most.

The Raiden he knew would never even consider harming his brothers. It was this Raiden whom Fujin couldn’t let near his younger brothers, and as much as he despised the idea, Fujin contemplated keeping his brothers off-realm . . . forever. Now, there was the decision with what to do with himself. Earthrealm was no longer recognizable and with those still living there gripped in constant fear, Fujin would be constantly at their defense, in so constantly against the sovereign deities of the realm. In all it meant he would likely get himself killed.

Fujin desired to leave this unfamiliar place, but his bind to the realm tugged at his very essence. His head shook at the confliction. His hands rose, tangling into his hair while his mind pulled him into a darker place than where he was then.

The sudden shift in the atmosphere pulled Fujin away from his grief. His bright eyes glowed, narrowing as he peered into the dark. He struck no threatening pose but his body remained tense and ready if necessary to fight.

“Who is there?” he questioned, his voice echoing down the hall. As the essence opened and revealed its distinct signature, Fujin knew exactly who had come to approach him before they came out of the darkness.

Two beads of gleaming red blinked until a figure stepped into the light. Shinnok stood tall, his shoulders squared with his hands clasp behind himself. It was his appearance that made Fujin shift, fists gripped just in case.

“Have you come to kill me again?” Fujin fought down the need to bare his teeth in anger at the deity before him. He deserved no other expression.

Fujin’s response made the god twitch out a reminiscent smile. “That had been rather rude of me, though it was a necessary means.”

Fujin leaned forward. “Necessary for what? For what you did to my brother?” There wasn’t any way possible now to keep the venom from seeping out into his tone.

No matter Fujin’s bite, Shinnok never reacted to it. Instead he observed the wind god with calculating eyes in a much too patient, much too readily way. “Even now you still don’t understand the honor I’ve given Raiden.”

Fujin balked. “Honor? Show me where the honor is in taking him and rewriting his very character. That wasn’t my brother, just some elevated facade masquerading as a god who once held the highest respect. I will not be fooled by this pretender, and neither will my brothers.”

“Watch what you say. Whom you speak so dejectedly of has claim to that of an Elder God and is my consort. Regardless of any conclusion you formulate in your head about who he was or is or will be to you, he has expressed his desire that you and the other elementals return to the realm and your duties.”

Fujin’s lips twitched downward. Subconsciously, he leaned back, unsure of Shinnok’s motives. “And you’re here to see his wishes fulfilled.”

Shinnok jutted his chin just so he could look down at Fujin. The bastard always enjoyed doing so. “I’m here to offer you reason.”

Fujin took a step back. “I’ve been given plenty of reason to abandon this realm entirely.”

Shinnok chuckled deeply in his throat as he leaned forward. “But you won’t. You’ve got too much honor to do so. And there’s regret too. A deep shame lingers in your soul because you couldn’t save your brother from this fate.”

Fujin clenched his eyes shut. All he wanted to do was blow the Elder God away, but he knew he couldn’t. And if he tried he’d wind up where he began. Nowhere.

Eyes open, Fujin glared with all the hate his soul could muster. “What did you do to him?” His tone was deep and his words trembled with instability. Fists clenched, shaking. There was subtle gusts that passed around, brushing against hair and skin, threatening to strengthen.

Watching Shinnok’s eyes glint in relish and his lips twist into a sadistic smile nearly had the wind god throwing himself against him. “If you’re that curious I’d be more than happy to show you.”

Fujin couldn’t contain his rage any longer. Shinnok’s diabolical pleasure had to be stopped. His winds picked up, one carrying him high, nearly touching the ceiling, while another he commanded to bind the Elder God whilst he descended with a pushed kick. Fujin struck Shinnok square in the chest and as soon as he did he released his encircling winds to then rush at him and force him back. Shinnok fell backwards, hitting the opposite wall.

It was Fujin’s mistake to pursue, but his fury couldn’t be stopped. He pushed forward with winds that whittled the stone and glass around, shaking the very passageway doomed to turn into a battlefield. His lunging fist meant to connect with the Elder God’s pale face but his knuckles crushed against the solid structure of the wall. Shinnok had twisted away.

Jerking around, Fujin only had time to brace himself when Shinnok struck back. His power surged against the wind god, and Fujin’s winds broke. He stumbled, himself falling into the damaged wall. It had happened so fast that when Shinnok took a hold of him Fujin hadn’t realized it until he was spun and slammed face first into the other side of the wall.

Over the sound of Fujin’s pained groans came Shinnok’s laughter. Teeth grit when the Elder God tightened his grasp, pushing his body against him with crushing weight. “You are most certainly Raiden’s brother. Your resistance is hereditary.” Fujin could even feel him smiling. “No matter. Even he succumbed to my demands. All I had to do was use my hands.”

Fujin’s body jerked the moment Shinnok wound an arm around him, his hand falling down and grasping his groin. His grip wasn’t at all gentle and it forced a hiss from the struggling wind god.

“Don’t touch me!” Fujin tried to buck away, to slam his head back into the face so close to his, but Shinnok didn’t grant him much room to properly wiggle.

Shinnok laughed again, right in Fujin’s ear. “He said that too. And I . . .” Fujin gasped when Shinnok began to rub him, gripping his length through his pants and stroking. “Didn’t heed.”

Burying himself into Fujin, the wind god felt Shinnok rub his face into his hair, inhaling him as his chest smoothed along his back and his hips across his behind. No matter Fujin’s struggles nor the winds he propelled, Shinnok wasn’t moved and the further he shook against him the tighter the grip became on his cock.

Voice hitching, Fujin felt panic rise. “Stop, stop this!”

“Oh, there’s no need to tremble.” One of Shinnok’s hands came up to comb down his hair. The ministration was meant to be comforting, and it was gentle, but Fujin found no relief in it. He even jerked his head back when that combing hand came down to brush knuckles along his face. But he couldn’t escape it forever and soon enough Shinnok took hold of his jaw, twisting him until his neck threatened to snap. He made him look at him and Fujin shook underneath those reddening eyes. “You even have the same look. It makes it hard to resist.”

Fujin gasped at a sudden squeeze along his crotch and it was that reaction which Shinnok used to push his tongue into his mouth the moment he pulled his face toward his. Immediately Fujin tried to back his head away, but Shinnok’s hold on his jaw ensured his complacency, fingers even pressing into the joints so that Fujin couldn’t so much as bite down. Eyes clenched shut at the disgust of it all, and as Shinnok lapped at him, sucking on his lips and tongue, Fujin felt himself fall apart in a mixture of rage and grief.

When Shinnok finally pulled away he seemed to take amusement in the horrified expression on Fujin’s face. It’s what pulled him back, this time toward his neck. “He quaked against me too, but in time I taught him to submit.” Fujin grunted the moment he felt Shinnok rut against him. He could even feel his rouse. Gods.

Shinnok kissed his way down Fujin’s neck and then up toward his jaw where he suckled until his teeth pulled at the skin there to ensure a mark was left behind. Purposely leaving a number before his lips brushed back against Fujin’s ear.

“You really want to know how I did it, hm?” Fujin shuddered as Shinnok dragged his tongue along the shell of his ear. He bit back the gag rising in his throat and huffed out another breath that caught when Shinnok thumbed the head of his cock. “I merged myself into him and then forced him to merge into me. And we did so over and over and over until he broke.”

Fujin strained his eyes, trying as hard as he could to glare back at Shinnok, but the Elder God continued to evade his heated gaze no matter how close he was. Instead he brushed lips and teeth across Fujin’s skin, and his hand finally released his groin in favor of actually sliding into his pants to grasp it bare. Fujin’s legs shook, his heart racing as Shinnok’s fingers connected to the tender skin of his cock. He was the first to ever touch him there.

“And then when Raiden began to piece himself back together I dined on him, as did Cetrion, and he on us.” Shinnok’s breath brushed over Fujin’s skin coldly, the residue of his saliva coated already a portion and its chill made Fujin shudder more. His thighs quivered from the god’s touch along his length, especially as he slid back, thumbing his testicles. “And then we fucked.” Shinnok once more rubbed his lips along Fujin’s temple. “So many times until Raiden came undone all over again.” Feeling Shinnok smile against his skin made Fujin remember the bile he tasted at the back of his mouth. “Your brother opened himself for me, let me merge our bodies until I was so deep inside him we were nearly one being. After that he wanted more and more. Still now he yearns for me. I could show you. Even you’d unravel at the way he cries out in ecstasy, how he bends to the pleasures and aches for orgasmic release.”

“NO!” Fujin finally garnered control of his shaking legs. He bent them, pushing off against the wall he’d been shoved into. His winds helped him push away. The wall caved in from the impact but it succeeded in sending both he and Shinnok flying to the other end of the hall. Shinnok crushed against the wall, his hold still firm until Fujin mustered the might of a hurricane to pry the god’s arms off of him. When he had he backed away, correcting his previous mistake and keeping a secure distance.

Body tense, clothing disheveled, Fujin took fighting stances, ready this time with a much clearer mind. One in tears over what Shinnok had done to his brother. “Defiler! I will find a way to make sure you receive punishment for all you’ve done!”

The Elder God straightened. He smiled at Fujin, not once making an effort to come back toward him. “That’s a presumptuous claim, one even my fellows have vowed and thusly failed to enact. I can’t see you doing any better.” The way his eyes roamed down the wind god’s body made Fujin shudder and subconsciously move his hands to hide away the skin he’d marred. Still, Shinnok only smiled. “Perhaps another time. Though I part you with another request: that you consider taking yourself and your brothers out of the realms you’ve hidden yourselves in and return to Earthrealm. As changed as you believe Raiden to be he still oft thinks about you, a fault in his reconstruction that just couldn’t be done away with. It’s those thoughts that spur him to look for you across the realms and when he wanders too far away we have no choice but to retract his leash. Naturally he fights back, because he can, but with his might equal to our own it becomes more than a challenge to restrain him. Cetrion and I both believe this lingering resistance would vanish should you and the others come and live with him again. Familial ties are near impossible to get rid of, it’s what brought you here to seek out Raiden. Surely you can understand our predicament and the way Raiden must be feeling as each day passes without his brethren beside him.”

Fujin hadn’t even gotten over the fright in his racing heart when the longing for Raiden’s companionship overtook him. Shinnok went from sultry words meant to arouse stimulation to words intending to capture familial loyalties. Standing there, it was hard for the wind god to know what he felt or how he should react.

As soon as Shinnok moved, Fujin stepped back. But the Elder God didn’t move toward him. He turned away, his back now facing Fujin.

“Meditate on all I’ve told you.” Shinnok turned his head, looking back toward Fujin. “I hope you don’t keep us waiting for your decision.” Then he was gone, and Fujin nearly collapsed.

It was the winds that kept Fujin up as well as helped him to the window. He leaned against the sill, letting the outside air cascade over him. It was much too warm and thick, not at all suitable to make any form of life on Earthrealm easy. But there was some relief in its quiet and stillness.

From there Fujin looked down at the courtyard. He could see crawling oni spotting the area like a plague. Occasionally he saw another race, but it was one he wasn’t acquainted with, which made Fujin wonder if Shinnok’s already captured other realms—or if these frightened peoples really were offering their own souls to keep the mad Elder God appeased.

Closing his eyes, Fujin tried his hardest not to let all the turmoil take over him, and in this horrid uneasiness, Fujin’s sadness multiplied. Leaning down, Fujin accepted all of the disappointment he had prepared himself for. Though, even prepared he still flinched back from the mounting pains. Pains he’s never known until now.

A shift in the atmosphere tugged at the wind god again.

Looking down, Fujin noticed his brother come out of the palace and onto the grounds. The area around him pulsed, and the oni once meandering nearby parted, creating such a perimeter that their presence was simply nonexistent. After that Fujin watched Raiden situate himself before two thick pillars and then he took position to meditate.

The stance, the simple movement, it all brought back recent and old memories. Fujin felt a tug along his heart, it morphed into a yearning to go beside as he had before and sit there next to his brother. This time, he didn’t ignore that pull.

Jumping out of the window, Fujin carried himself down into the courtyard. As unfamiliar as the place was, Fujin moved with his eyes alert, checking for any antagonistic presence. The oni lingered in the distance, their beady eyes glimmering in the dark, but none approached while Fujin came closer toward Raiden.

“May I join you?” Fujin felt a soft smile pull at his lips, it was a bittersweet expression but one Raiden didn’t delve into as he turned his red gaze toward him. Instead, his older brother closed his eyes, leveling his head before nodding.

In a brief swirl of wind, Fujin rose into the air, crossing his legs and pressing his knuckles together. What commonality this was, yet in this current timeline just the fact that he was sitting there, next to Raiden, felt oddly surreal, in that it didn’t feel wrong. Even though he’d personally witnessed a god he did not recollect, Fujin’s body still sung with memories of doing just this and it was because of that Fujin fell away into his mind of brighter days levitating next to a brother who was kind, and protective, and resolute. In those memories he forgot himself and it was in those sunlit days he found brief happiness.

“I’ve missed this.” Fujin kept his eyes closed but his ears alert. “I’ve missed you.”

Raiden stirred beside him. Fujin opened his eyes to see his brother looking at him. His expressions were still hard to decipher, but when he reached out and gently pushed a lock of the wind god’s hair from his brow the emotions broke him and Fujin couldn’t help but lean into his brother’s touch. He reached out, taking that hand and laying against it, trembling as he did so. The relief of touching Raiden again, of being touched by him still calmed his agonized spirit.

“You tremble like you’re afraid of me,” Raiden muttered. His other hand came up, cupping Fujin’s face. When their eyes met, Raiden looked into them and found some form of displeasure. “You even look at me as if you can’t recognize me.”

Fujin wound his hands around Raiden’s. “But you aren’t the same.” And that’s what was so wrong, and so very sad.

Raiden remained still for a moment. His eyes still drawing over Fujin. Fujin didn’t ignore the way his gaze lingered on current marks that hadn’t been there before. “You’re right. I’m not. I’ve been reborn, remade into something more powerful. I am beyond the binds of any realm, elevated. Shinnok and Cetrion have blessed me with this position.”

Fingers curled, Fujin pulled Raiden’s hands into his own, clutching them against his chest. “They’ve cursed you with it! Can’t you see they’ve defiled your very essence, corrupted your being so that you reflect them? Are all the things they’ve done to you forgotten?”

Raiden pulled his hands away and then stood. He looked down at Fujin who looked worried he’d leave him. He might have, but Raiden remained for now.

“Not forgotten, understood,” Raiden replied. He looked toward the palace and Fujin found sadness in that he could find no disgust in his brother’s eyes. “It is an honor to hold their affection, and I will respect the position they’ve given me.” He looked back at Fujin who was standing just a reach away. “I only wish you to do the same.”

Now Raiden was turning to leave. Fujin felt himself tense again. He wanted to chase after him, but he knew he couldn’t because if he did then it would be for an eternity. It was realizing that Raiden wasn’t satisfied with his presence anymore that made the wind god pity their shortcomings.

“Is that all you wish?” At least Raiden stopped. He didn’t turn, but he stopped. Fujin took a step forward. He was still so far away from his brother, and he wouldn’t turn around and look at him. “Is that all you want of me?”

Fujin’s heart rushed against his chest. He didn’t know how it still thrived when it was already so very crumbled. But it’s what caused his throat to constrict, and his breathing to hitch. His eyes blinked away a barrage of stings, but the deeper pain remained burning in his chest, tearing apart everything.

“What I wish . . .” Raiden shifted, his fists clenching and then unclenching. “I wish for us to be together. All of us.”

“Will that make you, as you are, happy?” Fujin’s lips quivered. He held himself as tall as he could to show strength, or perhaps to find it, but he knew he had lost all of it long ago.

Then Raiden turned. He looked at Fujin with a brief pass of confusion. Those near emotionless eyes bore into the wind god, as did his words—

“I am already happy, Fujin.”

Fujin let out a breath, his eyes falling, his head bowing. He nodded, letting his heart go in stagnant peace. “Then what difference would it make if we came home?” As Fujin looked back at Raiden he understood that there was no place available beside him. To his right stood Shinnok and to his left stood Cetrion. Fujin and their brothers would only blemish their image.

So Fujin turned and took himself away on a gale of wind. He hadn’t even said a proper farewell to Raiden or the realm. He hadn’t the heart to anymore.

* * *

Shinnok felt Fujin leave. He also felt the disturbance in Raiden’s energies as he did. Coming out into the courtyard, Shinnok found the thunder god conflicted, his eyes toward the sky where his brother vanished. With so much power he was still new to its means of control, and he hadn’t the millions of eons Cetrion and Shinnok had at maintaining dominance over it, so more often than not Raiden’s sudden emotions would spring and the realm would pay the price for housing three Elder Gods.

The skies rolled with darker clouds, rumbling and flashing. Raiden still stood with his eyes up. His fists were clenched and currents ran down his frame.

“So he left.” Shinnok came closer even though the ground began to tremble.

Raiden looked at him. There was something heavy in those beautiful eyes of his. It might have been sadness, it might have been fury, it might have been regret. Who was to say? It was up to Shinnok to decipher or at least tell his protégé what he should be feeling.

“Will he return?” Raiden looked to Shinnok for answers as he always did. Shinnok only smiled, coming to stand alongside him.

“That all depends on your parting words with him.” Shinnok watched Raiden mull over all that had been said and done. Though, he knew, that in Raiden’s complacency he wouldn’t find any means to understand his brother’s upset. And that was just fine.

Glancing down, Raiden shook his head. “I left him with no malice, yet he parted me in grief. Have I upset him in some way? Is what I am now something he despises that much?” Shinnok watched him look at his hands and the red bolts rolling down. It ever thrilled the Elder God. Raiden’s power electrified the air around and even chipped away at nearby structures. It would take some time to perfect, but Shinnok looked forward to each molding session.

Putting his hand over Raiden’s fist, Shinnok leaned in. “It is jealousy. I have seen it even in the other realms. So many lesser gods begging to stand beside you with just as much favor.”’ His other hand rose up and cupped Raiden’s chin. Raiden only looked at him and listened. “Their hearts fail them when I find them unworthy. But what about you, Raiden? You stand underneath Cetrion and I no longer, but beside. It is in your right to do what you will.”

Raiden blinked, his eyes fell in thought. Shinnok released him, stepping aside. He motioned that he walk with him, Raiden did so. “I . . . don’t know what I want . . .”

Shinnok nodded. “Then you are content?”

Raiden paused, stopping. “I am, but there are times . . .”

“When you’re not.” Shinnok realized Raiden’s confusion was disrupting the atmosphere around. Electric currents clogged the air and sparked against trees and stone. It wasn’t at all in his plan to dismantle the palace in any way, so he pushed his own essence out to combat Raiden’s expanding energies.

The collision of their essences turned Raiden away from the jumbled thoughts inside his head. His red eyes looked at Shinnok curiously. Though Shinnok only shifted, nodding that he come after him and disperse the energies he hadn’t the time to control.

“Come clear your head, Raiden.” With another wave, Shinnok spurred Raiden closer. At first the thunder god was hesitant to engage in any form of physical combat, but with Shinnok reaching out and pushing against him he charged his body and then Shinnok.

They tumbled together. Arms flailing and legs stretching. Raiden threw out his might while Shinnok blocked it all. The trembling from their clashes made Shinnok shudder with excitement. After all his patience and hard work Raiden was who he wanted; someone not so easily broken by his descending fists.

In their struggle, Raiden’s elbow struck Shinnok in the side and his reaction from it brought an opportunity for the thunder god to round in a kick. Shinnok caught the leg and pushed Raiden away. He came after him instead.

He struck against Raiden’s blocking arms, shooting out his own might while Raiden combated him with his. The sensation made Shinnok delirious and so he coaxed Raiden further into this spar. The moment he caught a wrist, he pulled the god close enough to knee him in the sternum. Raiden’s grunt thrilled Shinnok as did how the god pulsed away with a shock that singed Shinnok’s robes.

“Think of all the things you have.” Shinnok rushed forward, he kicked out, but Raiden twisted around, coming at him with his charged fists. Shinnok caught the both of them, taking the voltage that made his forearm muscles spasm. “And then think of all the things you want.”

Raiden threw himself out of Shinnok’s grasp and charged him again. Once more they were dancing around each other with block and strike. “I have power.”

Shinnok nodded. “Yes.”

“I have realms.”

“Yes.”

“I have worshippers.”

“Yes.”

“I have lovers.”

“Yes.” Shinnok blocked Raiden’s flying descent with his power, he hung in the air for a moment before he sparked and then shot himself out of the hold, landing just behind Shinnok. He lunged forward again, intent to slam his palm into his spine, but Shinnok twisted and caught his arm. He held him there and Raiden looked at him.

“I have so much, and yet I still feel as if I’m wanting.” The absolute frustration over this confusion scrawled over Raiden’s features. He was looking up at Shinnok helplessly, looking to him to figure out what was wrong with him. “Is it . . . is it because I don’t have my brothers?”

Shinnok shifted his hold, twisting Raiden around until he was secured in a tight hold. Still just as firm, he wound an arm around his torso, his other ran down the side of Raiden’s face. He then laid a kiss against the god’s cheek. “Is it? I cannot feel for you.” But he could manipulate said feelings.

Raiden still struggled, though his attempts were growing weaker by each caress Shinnok was exchanging. “I feel . . . I feel . . .” Raiden tugged at the hold Shinnok had around his torso, his shoulders shifted, pushing into Shinnok’s chest to tug away, but the rising confusion began to settle the thunder god. “I feel incomplete.”

“Without your brothers?” Shinnok gave Raiden another kiss, this time against the hooded part of his jaw.

Raiden nodded. “I feel like that’s it.” And just like that he ceased all sense of struggle. He stood there, staring into the confines of his mind whilst Shinnok took the opportunity to offer more touches and more kisses. “What should I do? How can I convince them to come to my side?”

Shinnok chuckled, sighing out as he shook his head. “Raiden, have you been listening to anything I’ve said?” He could feel the god shift against him. He turned his head and Shinnok couldn’t help but lean forward and offer him a kiss. As he pulled away, his let his hand along Raiden’s face descend down his neck, over his torso, further down along his abdomen until he reached down and took hold of his groin. “If you want something, just take it. You are beyond the position that requires questions. As I am.”

He kissed Raiden again and smiled against his lips the moment he felt one of the god’s hands come down over his and encourage the grasp. With lips parted he welcomed Raiden’s returning affection. His tongue charged as it swirled inside Shinnok’s mouth and the moment the Elder God clamped down on it to suckle Raiden let out a rumbling groan.

Shinnok felt Raiden stir underneath his palm and when his hips moved into him, Shinnok released the god. He watched Raiden turn around to him and with confidence the thunder god reached forward and wound his arms around Shinnok’s neck, bringing them closer until their bodies melded and their lips laid across the other again. Shinnok took the time to run his hands down the form pressed against him, his fingertips tingled from Raiden’s hidden currents but it only made his hands twitch for more, especially skin.

It was confounding why Raiden always insisted on wearing layers, but it was also fun ridding him of his robes as well. Shinnok worked at the plates along his shoulders and breast, once they had fallen away, he tugged at binds and loosened rope. Raiden wasn’t so very different, his own hands falling down Shinnok’s sides to then reach forward and slip between the Elder God’s scarlet robes. His hands along his chest made Shinnok shudder and it only burned him to feel Raiden just as he was.

How different, how thrilling it was to feel Raiden grasp for him, to moan against him and eagerly lean close to lay his lips across Shinnok’s mouth, his jaw, his neck and shoulders. The power in the hands rubbing down his chest, scraping over his nipples and then descending had Shinnok quaking with need. More so now than ever.

Sex was so much better now that it was consensual.

Shinnok burned as Raiden descended. He had parted his robes and lavished his chest with his tongue and teeth. Shinnok did nothing but watch, his hands running along the broad back of the thunder god in encouragement. Then his hand came up, knocking away the god’s hat and tugging off his hood. He liked to tangle his fingers in Raiden’s ivory locks when he sucked him off, and he wasn’t one to change routine.

Already on his knees, Shinnok watched as Raiden undid the tie to his pants. He grasped his hardening member so quickly and shoved him into his mouth that Shinnok hadn’t even time to see himself. But that was just fine, because any lackluster still persisting was sucked away by Raiden’s movement and wet mouth.

“Ohhh.” Shinnok leaned his head back, fingers tightening, letting Raiden set the pace. He was already in his throat and in pull, Shinnok felt as if he’d finish any moment.

While Raiden bobbed against him, Shinnok felt the god reach out to rub his testicles. Not once did Raiden stop the Elder God from bucking, from rolling into that hot orifice and simply fucking him. The hand in Raiden’s hair moved, Shinnok laid his palms flat against the god’s face and moved.

“Mm, yess, Oh Raiden, yes.” Shinnok made sure to bottom out the very moment his orgasm shook through him. His eyes shined as he watched the god on his knees drink in everything, still bobbing his head even after it was all over. There were days where that’s where Shinnok wanted Raiden, but not today. Instead he patted his cheek and said, “Enough. I’ll see to you now.”

There was a mixture of spit and semen connecting Raiden’s lips and the tip of Shinnok’s cock. A vision he’d always remember and constantly recreate. It hurt to separate the two, but Shinnok made the thunder god stand if only to drag him closer and taste himself on him.

They twined like that for some time, their lips meshing, their tongues dancing until Shinnok sucked every bit of himself from Raiden’s mouth. When he felt Raiden raise a leg around his waist and rub their crotches together he moved away from the thunder god’s mouth to huff out a groan. Raiden never stopped his lips, carrying on to rub along Shinnok’s face and his neck, he moaned himself when he felt Shinnok’s hand slid over his hip, gripping his thigh and gyrating into him.

“Shinnok.” Raiden kissed down to the god’s chest. “Shinnok!” His needy whines had Shinnok twitching and growling in frustration.

The look on Raiden’s face was absolute bliss while Shinnok’s twisted in aggravation. His attention turned to tearing back clothing. Soon enough Shinnok had Raiden on the grounds of the courtyard. Already Raiden parted his legs for him, opening his energies for the Elder God to dine on.

There was no need to prepare Raiden for his penetration, they fucked enough for the god to be constantly ready for him. Though, some days Shinnok took the greatest of pleasures making Raiden come undone with nothing but his fingers until he all but begged for his cock. This was not going to be one of those days.

With a sighing grunt, Shinnok pushed into Raiden to the hilt. Raiden trembled beneath him, but his hands clutched his shoulders and, quicker than Shinnok himself, he began rolling his hips. Always the eager one.

Their initial pace was brutal, forcing the other into orgasm as quickly as possible and then another, and another, and another. They were still deep into this needy, messy rush when Shinnok leaned down and took in Raiden’s energies. The god cried out from his powers slipping from him, but then gasped when the overarching pleasure of Shinnok’s ramming cock struck him in all the right places, rattling every corner of his physical form.

Hooking his arms beneath Raiden’s knees, Shinnok pressed closer, enjoying the way the body beneath him spread, opening and then tightening the further he pushed into him. His grunts became breathy, his sighs revealing his weakening. But, by the One Being, did Raiden’s essence taste perfect. The more he devoured the more Raiden fell lax and all sense of control over his mounting pleasure was lost.

Raiden’s chest smeared with his ejaculations and Shinnok couldn’t help himself from leaning down and running his tongue over the substance. His path ended just at the god’s budded nipples, he bit and tugged, delighted when Raiden’s anal muscles tightened around his pressing length. So Shinnok bit down harder until the god bled.

“Ah!” Raiden’s eyes sparked as he fell into another orgasm. His ability to move along with Shinnok’s thrusts began to falter, but even as he drained he didn’t at all tell the Elder God to stop, in fact the tightening Shinnok felt around his throbbing cock told him otherwise.

“Oh Raiden.” Shinnok sighed against his skin, kissing his way along the swirling lines of the god’s divine markings. “I’ve done it. I’ve made you perfect. Perfect.” Leaning back, Shinnok pressed Raiden’s shoulder’s down, keeping him still and flat as he chased another end. When he shuddered and pulsed out his orgasm, the feel of his semen spilling out onto his thighs made him grin. Looking down, he noticed Raiden’s eyes had faded. It wouldn’t be good to devour much more of him, but he couldn’t help it.

Refusing to pull out, Shinnok bent down, kissing Raiden. He was delighted to feel him kiss back. It was a weak effect, but he still relented the entirety of his mouth to Shinnok’s demanding tongue.

The kiss was cut short when Raiden surprised the both of them with a sudden spurt of energy. He pushed forward, hands slamming against Shinnok’s chest just enough to knock him off balance, and with a shift of his hips, Raiden rolled them over. He sat there atop the Elder God, panting. It wasn’t but a beat later that he leaned forward and began taking from Shinnok’s energies.

Lips curling and hands nestling along Raiden’s marked hips, Shinnok allowed him to feed. As soon as Raiden accumulated enough strength he rolled his hips, situating his knees on either side of Shinnok’s hips just enough to be able to move on his own. He was sight to behold, always so ready to ride Shinnok’s cock that even the essence filtering out of the Elder God couldn’t prevent just how hard he always was for Raiden.

Gasps rocked out of Shinnok as he watched Raiden recover. His markings glowed and something across his skin fluttered. Clouds seeped out of him like sweat, all dark and swirling. They rose upward, rumbling and crackling in their bellies. Electric ribbons zagged across Raiden’s limbs and how he vibrated inside made Shinnok come undone.

Back arching and head leaning back, Shinnok’s eyes fluttered closed as he felt Raiden tighten around him, sending bolts down the length of his phallic firmness. He wouldn’t last long as soon as Raiden started doing this and the thunder god knew it. Shinnok could see Raiden smiling, licking his lips from all of the bodily fluids they exchanged previously. Watching him moan when he filled him was a mesmerizing sight, especially as he clenched his eyes shut and panted with ache.

Reaching forward, Shinnok grasped Raiden’s penis, rubbing him with affectionate fingers. He was moist, already covered from an orgasm, but the semen made it easier to glide along him and as soon as he closed his fist around him Raiden rocked forward into the grasp, in turn rolling his hips to another rhythm.

They had their fill for as long as they could stand their courtyard surroundings, but Shinnok’s need to see his lover encased in silken sheets and surrounded by the treasures of the realm moved him to take Raiden into his arms and return to the palace. As soon as he had him in their room he pinned him to the bed, rocking into him until the world passed them by. And Raiden took it, he spread himself for the Elder God, moaned that he take him, that he spill in him every time they found nirvana together.

The creak of the bed sung to them in their tempo, but neither stopped until they captured some form of satisfaction that chased away the stresses of the days gone by. When thighs were stained with the mess of their bodies and breaths so far gone, they separated. Raiden’s body shook in the aftermath of their lovemaking, his muscles thrumming to the beat of his pounding heart. Shinnok twitched as well, his eyes looking into Raiden’s who never moved away. He could see longing in them, desire and affection for the one he stared at, and it endeared Shinnok. So he leaned down and laid his lips over Raiden’s.

Raiden’s hands came up, cupping Shinnok’s head as the Elder God kissed him. His body was pressed next to his, propped up on an elbow as he leaned down to kiss the thunder god. It all was a sigh of relaxation, their enjoyment from the other sated. Even without the wonderful tension of pleasure, there was a calming moment just basking in the afterglow.

Lips smacked and tongues were suckled as they moved lazily against each other’s mouth. Shinnok let his hands stroke Raiden, passing over tender skin just enough to feel the phantom tingle of pleasures they left alone. Shinnok had just graced the touch of his fingertips along Raiden’s half-hard cock when another presence entered the room.

Cetrion’s bright eyes moved over them. Her essence hinted at sought after desires and delight in seeing the two together in the bed they shared. She came to them, curling herself into the sheets, naked and as bare as they.

For a time Cetrion watched. Her aura brushed against theirs in disembodied caresses, expressing her pleasure, but then she leaned forward, dipping over to lay an affectionate kiss against Raiden’s shoulder. Her lips fluttered over the skin lightly, but lingered, and her refusal to leave had the thunder god pulling his lips away from Shinnok’s and turning toward her.

Shinnok licked his lips, relishing in Raiden’s taste as the god shifted away from him to twist in the sheets and devote his attention toward Cetrion. He didn’t mind at all, and let the two entangle themselves.

Watching Raiden seal his lips over Cetrion’s the moment he rolled over her made Shinnok’s heart swell. His sister moaned against him, especially when the thunder god moved between her legs. The two indulged themselves in each other all the while Shinnok laid beside them with gleaming eyes. His sister was a beautiful vision as Raiden entered her, rolling his hips just as she rolled hers. The way she arched, and how she stretched herself out across the sheets while Raiden leaned over her and exuded power in his form stirred Shinnok again.

Cetrion’s moans filled the room, encouraging the god above her to keep pace, and to slink in deeper. Raiden rocked her just the way she liked it. Nipples jutting upward, her breasts bounced until the thunder god grasped them, descending his mouth across them while her core tightened around him with need.

Her hands dragging down Raiden’s flexing back scraped. Cetrion traced his markings as well as the new ones Shinnok had created with his nails and teeth. Lips parted, her teeth gleamed in the glow of Raiden’s eyes and when Cetrion looked up at him she leaned forward to press her lips to his throat, desiring to leave her own marks.

All of this was all Shinnok could want; He had realms that empowered him, peoples that bowed and worshipped him, and lovers who laid back and eagerly spread themselves for him. Lounging there in a bed large and sturdy, draped in soft sheets that carried the stains of their unifications inspired him. The two beings he admired most were just a physical touch away, rolling against each other, sharing their passions. This magnificent outcome was all because Shinnok had so wanted it. Just as he wanted to reach out and touch the gods.

He laid his hand down Raiden’s back, his fingers twitching as his muscles moved to the rhythm of his thrusts. Along with Cetrion’s cries of pleasure, Shinnok fisted himself. The sheer clutter of their mingling energies pulled him into a quick orgasm while Cetrion’s swirling essence laid open for Raiden to inhale it as he took enjoyment from her body.

Sparks zapped across the room. Raiden’s eyes were so bright they were near white. He shook, groaning as he found his end. Cetrion hitched at his filling, rocking her hips against his to take everything he had. Then she began to take from his energies.

Raiden’s elbows buckled, he fell wholly atop Cetrion and there she cradled him, her lips pressed against his face and neck as she drained him of the potent energies coursing through him. She merged their essences together, keeping Raiden afloat just enough to take a large portion of him. Cetrion’s own aura expanded, quaking the room as well as the grounds beyond.

Her moans declared her satisfaction and sedation. Cetrion she clutched Raiden to herself, refusing to release him even as he softened inside her. Fingers curled and ankles hooked, she breathed against the god lain atop her, their breaths mingling.

Eventually, her moans turned into hums. Her body still throbbed with the fading ripples of their merge, it was evident with the way she rocked to overdose on every slipping sensation. When she looked over, Cetrion locked eyes with Shinnok. She breathed, the gust ruffling Raiden’s hair as he laid against her breast. Cetrion’s passion was over for now, yet she still hadn’t let go of the Thunder God, and as she looked at Shinnok there was a silent oath of her resistance to do so in any means. Good. Neither would he.

Pressing closer, Shinnok laid beside them, his hands running down Raiden’s flickering markings and then up toward Cetrion’s beautiful face. Fingers brushed along her lips before he leaned in and pushed his own to hers. They kissed softly and when Shinnok pulled away he allowed the two of them to succumb to the consensual tensions they wrought upon their bodies.

“My loves.” Shinnok hummed as his eyes roamed over them. Cetrion hummed in response, however Raiden was already unconscious, still nestled within the goddess’s tight core and arms. The way she looked at Shinnok made him realize her gratitude. She was just as happy with him, and Raiden.

Nestling into the sheets and stuffed pillows further, Shinnok laid his arm over Cetrion, offering it to her to prop her head upon. She smiled and then closed her eyes, keeping her hold on Raiden. In the peace of their stillness, Shinnok too closed his eyes and sighed his content. He would never give this up, and if any being came with intentions demanding that he do so then there would be chaos and death.

* * *

Fujin’s heart, in all its fractured remains, yearned to return to his brothers. He wanted to hold them close and know that they loved him as he did. He wanted to feel the blood of their auras mingle in unity and familial support. Everything he was denied when he chose to go to Earthrealm and confront a reformed brother.

Yet Fujin remained absent, his longing unfulfilled because he couldn’t move any more. He fell into the voids between the realms, motionless. It was there he remained, curled, his arms clinging to his legs and his face hidden against his knees. It was there wept out his sorrows and lost himself in the dark places of his mind.

And it was there an Elder God found him.

Fujin felt her touch his shoulder. Her essence reached out tenderly, consoling his own rattled energies. He shifted, turning his red eyes toward her. Their gaze looked into the other and it was from her vision Fujin still saw himself. What a pathetic sight he was, it only made him pity himself more.

“I am sorry you had to experience that.” Her gaze fell down to the hand on her shoulder. Fujin had yet to jerk her off. “Raiden’s transformation too disturbed us.”

“Is that why you lost?” Fujin closed his eyes to try to control the way they throbbed, pushing out the moisture that continued to slip down his cheeks.

The Elder Goddess’s hand removed. She stood beside him, looking at him, but also staring into the time of their defeat. Fujin saw everything all over again. “While our bodies were, our hearts were not prepared. Shinnok and Cetrion were our brethren. Even as we struggled with all of our might it became obvious that we could not find it in ourselves to truly harm them.”

“But they harmed you. Clearly your sense of family meant nothing to them.” Fujin huffed out a breath, his heart picking up pace. With each beat the shattered pieces that made the organ chipped against another, stinging the wind god, but he tolerated the pain and the more to come.

He could feel the goddess’s energies shift. There was a sadness in it, rising to Fujin’s jabbing words. “You are right, yet was that wrong of us?” Fujin quieted. “Was it wrong that our hearts still felt the tenderness of affection for those we loved? That they lost all sense of that bind is their fault, not ours. Not yours, Fujin.”

Lips trembled, Fujin’s eyes closed. He laid his forehead against his knees again, trying to survive the beating of his wounded heart.

“Do not hate that you love your brother, that you still love him. It is no weakness but a gift for those uncorrupted and whole.”

“But I’m not whole,” Fujin said, sighing out his agony. He trembled, looking back up at the Elder God. “Not without Raiden.”

Her beautiful features moved Fujin’s. For a moment he couldn’t feel the way his heart chipped inside his chest, nor how his muscles tensed with quivering shakes. Instead his eyes watched as the Elder Goddess leaned down, laying her hands on his face. Her touch gave him temporal relief and he sighed.

“I truly do pity all that’s been done to you, but I admire your light, Fujin. If you are willing to keep it then there may be a way we can save Raiden.”

Fujin’s eyes brightened. He straightened, touching the hands along his face. “How?”

The goddess moved her touch away. “The others and I have debated on how we should return. After discovering that we simply haven’t the will to end Shinnok and Cetrion we can now only come to one course of action, and that is to rewrite time itself.”

Fujin blinked. “You have the ability to do that?”

The goddess shook his head. “No, but we know of a being whom does. You are more than welcome to come with us to see her.” She held out her hand. “After all, this matter concerns you and all those connected as well.”

Fujin floated there for a moment, looking into her eyes as she looked into his and they into each other’s. There was no malice in her, nothing hidden. She opened herself for him and bore everything truth she currently had. So Fujin reached forward and took the offered hand.

Where Fujin was taken was a place even outside the voids between the realms. Beyond all sense of space and into the most secret and secrets. Time moved so differently in the vacuum he and the other Elder Gods moved into. It passed by quickly and yet so slowly all at once. Gears moved, rolling like an ocean’s waters. Their clacking all fell into perfect synchronization, sprouting up dust that descended and then slunk down into a device in the shape of an hourglass.

There, beside the tall curved structure, levitated a being. She was donned in blues and whites, gold tinted her skin, and in his hands shined all the might needed to merge the sands together coherently. Her essence was so very different than that of an Elder God that for a moment Fujin believed she might have been someone close to his own kind, but, no, she was beyond that.

“Lady Kronika.” Fujin was amazed that even the Elder Gods bowed to her, offering her honorifics as if they were below her.

The figure hadn't even turned toward their presence. She hadn't even ceased the sway of her arms while she said, "The purpose for which you came here cannot be fulfilled." Then bright blue eyes looked at them. "It is against my will and the will of the sands."

The larger of the Elder Gods stepped forward. He looked up toward this Kronika with wide eyes and a pleading face, an expression Fujin's never before beheld on that of an Elder God. "If not a restart then what can we do? We tried to resist your son's ambitions but have thus far failed. We understand any correction is beyond our might, but it is not beyond yours."

When Kronika turned, when she moved herself away from the hourglass and slipped toward the floor, she stood before them as a powerful force. "That it is not, however I have not yet been so inclined to intervene in all that's transpired."

"Is it because it's of your design?" Fujin couldn't stop himself from questioning the suspicion rising inside him. His eyes narrowed, wondering if this being had control over the events of history, and if she did then she was a cause for greater concern.

Kronika's azure orbs roamed over Fujin. She smiled. "You're the brother. Know that I fall with great disdain for what has happened, irrevocable events have been set in motion which has caused me reasons to worry. Such pivotal points unfortunately began with that thunder god."

 _That thunder god_? Fujin's brows furrowed. "What of my brother have you grief over?" His fists clenched, already contempt over the disassociations of the supreme.

"Raiden’s existence was not meant to catch the universe’s eyes, much less Shinnok and Cetrion’s. Their affections for him has disrupted the binds I have placed over them since their beginning. They were born from me, you see. Who they were then isn’t what they are now.” Kronika shifted, her eyes falling toward the Elder Gods and then over the hourglass that continued to drop sand away. "Long before the dawn of time when the One Being was at his worst he forced himself over me as well as the child into my womb. I grew with the Great Devourer's spawn and upon birth I realized that child was too powerful, enough even to act as a physical form for the One. I couldn't allow that so I separated the child. One became two; brother and sister.

“I designed their divided entities to drift apart, to pertain opposite personalities, opposing ideals, and differentiated their abilities. It was because of this that the One Being was able to be defeated and his essence broken apart. I kept these failsafes, weaving them into my timelines for eons. Unbeknownst to myself my designs were found flawed, falling under compromise from one single contribution: Passion. I’d known my offspring were constantly drawn to one another as an aftereffect, their souls reminiscing of a time when they had been one. It was my designs that pulled their consciousnesses to never remain together for long. But it was these emotions of desire, of passions, of lusts that united them that I couldn’t stop." Kronika looked back toward Fujin. A vexed expression shifting her features. "It was Raiden who pulled my children into the whirlwind of discombobulated feckless emotion. Their decision to step out of their rolls and pursue him rattled my binds on them and the moment they were loosened of all these inhabitations the very fabric of the realms began to unravel as my sands shifted. All my subtleties were ignored, they merged and stirred the One Being.

“If he awakens he will seek out the body he desires. Should Shinnok and Cetrion continue to merge there will come a day when they won’t separate again and when that day comes their might will awaken the One Being and the realms will cease to be—and then us all."

The thought of the One Being finding consciousness was always the one thing that could shake an Elder God to the core. "What then shall we do?"

Kronika was quiet for a moment before she floated over them again. Arm outstretched she pulled at the sands, they glittered once they came into her palm. With a pulsing light she held the sands close until something began to take shape in her grasp.

"Take this." She sent down a golden medallion with a green gem glittering at its center. "I cannot change all that has befallen but I can offer you a means to construct the paths from here. This medal will be all you to stop them. It is crafted from my womb. Where once it was a confine for them, so too will it be again. I’ve allowed the ability to draw in one. How you accomplish this task lies in your hands."

Hands grasped the disk close. The Elder Gods bowed again. "You have our gratitude, Lady Kronika. We will not fail you or this universe."

When the Elder Gods moved to leave, Fujin remained. They motioned him to follow but he wouldn't take his eyes away from the timekeeper.

"Tell me, Lady Kronika, in your time watching the sands fall and tipping the glass so that they shift where you deem, what have you seen of my brother's fate?" Fujin stood firm, resistant to be moved in any way. His fists clenched and his jaw shifted. He had to know.

Kronika's bright eyes looked at him. In them was the days of times gone by and times yet to take come. "I had plans for Raiden. It is unfortunate the role he's played in this all."

"Played?" Fujin shook his head, his lips stretching into a line. "My brother never intended for such twisted affections to befall him. If your grief with him was so much then why did you allow all that's happened to him?"

"Fujin." The warning came from behind him, from the Elder Gods. He ignored them. He would not take his gaze away from Kronika nor her from him.

Kronika shifted. Turning toward the hourglass and then taking in a swab of sand. She swirled it, spreading it around until its shine showed visions of a marvelous place—it was Earthrealm, risen to grandeur more than Fujin's ever seen. He was there, as were his younger brothers, donned in wealth and valor. And then there was Raiden, standing tall and proud and majestic in the light of the sun.

"Your brother was meant to serve your realm for ages, harboring in wondrous works and designs." With a twitch of Kronika's fingers the vision morphed. Fujin watched Raiden bestow the realm's sovereignty upon his brow before he took to the heavens. "After, he was to ascend into might and glory, and you were to take his place."

Fujin held his clenched fists, feeling his spirit fall at the imagery of this blessed dream. "But now . . . what's to become of him?"

Kronika wiped away the sands. Her face blank. "Now, he's been so far moved from my original scheme that I desire to erase him entirely."

Fujin gapped, eyes wide. She couldn't. She wouldn't. Could she?

"But you can't—!"

Thankfully Kronika shook her head. "Not as it is now. Though it would have been good that I do. He's done enough damage. My children lose their selves near him, he goads them to merge with him and then each other, and look: he's broken your heart. Without Raiden all of this discourse simply wouldn't be. If your heart never knew him then it would never know the pains he can cause. Isn’t that the relief you desire?"

Fujin swallowed. A time and place without Raiden? What kind of a world would that be? Would it be just as Kronika said or would it be vastly different from her truths?

That he was trying to envision it made Fujin nauseous. So he shook his head from the idea. When he looked at Kronika he offered her his remorse. So far removed had she remained that she simply could never understand the strength of a broken heart, of his broken heart.

"You ask me this when I've already been given the privilege to stand beside Raiden?" Fujin shook his head, his smile full of sadness. "You should know better, Lady Kronika. But I can't condemn you too harshly when it is obvious you've never known love in any of its forms. For that I leave you with my pity."

Fujin turned, moving out of the room, even beyond the Elder Gods who stood astounded by his boldness. He didn't care if they followed him and hunted him down for his disrespect. The timekeeper was no friend of his nor any solution to correcting what had been wronged.

A portion of strength returned to the terran god's heart, enough to move him back to Outworld. His brothers waited for him there, all so angry with his disappearance and so relieved with his return. He hadn't the time to face their incessant questions when he threw his arms around the three of them and held them close.

He was glad they held him and let him weep before they began their investigative barrage. When they inevitably did Fujin was forced to tell them all that had transpired. And just like he had, Fujin watched his brothers shatter at the revealed truths.

To the likes of Shao and Argus he relayed information cautiously, censoring every part he couldn't admit happened in his heart. He told them of Earthrealm's corruption, of the validation of Raiden's position amongst the two Elder Gods. Fujin even mentioned the tributes. To his horror Argus and Shao had known about them, even considered following suit for prolonged inaction.

Fujin wasn't one to tell another how to rule their realm but he gave all plea against the act. Whether the gods listened would be their choice, however he would not be able to remain in a realm who submitted to such barbarianism. He made this clear enough and wondered if Argus and Shao's continual indecision was from Fujin's threatened action.

All of the rising turmoil was self-inflicted. Fujin's personal witness worried more gods than he had realized. Too many began barricading their realms, sealing the very doorways. It was so none could see how they broke apart and relented to the powers beyond.

Instead of standing firm, there were countless deities visiting Earthrealm to swear allegiance to the powers there. These wary unifications disturbed the other side that resisted and none resisted more than Shao of Outworld.

Even with his great helm it was easy to see the dismaying upset scrawled upon the Outworld deity's features.

"Is this what it's come to? Is this how we all fall? Not with a punctuated bang but with a groveling whimper?!" Shao snarled, his fingers curled into the armrest of the seat he was situated in. His angers echoed into the silent hall where his realm’s leaders gathered as well as neighboring deities. "How many is it now that's bent to demands not yet made? That mad god hasn't even lifted a finger against the other realms and they already flock to him to plead for his mercies."

Argus sighed toward his left. "Maybe it'll be them then who’ll come after us. Shinnok's in the perfect position to sit away and watch the universe fall apart by its own anxieties. The effects of which have been felt even in Edenia. I do what I can to maintain the peace, but it's such a fragile thing in days like these."

Shao snorted. He leaned back in his seat, his chest puffing. "Should any realm even think about coming into mine I will show them Outworld's might."

"Confrontation is the one thing we're meant to avoid, Shao," Argus said, his arms crossed and his brow lowered.

Shao glared at the Edenian god with wide ambers. "Sometimes conflict is unavoidable." He looked out into his court with accusation in his irises. "Even Axol over Osh-tekk went to Earthrealm to kneel before Shinnok. Bastard probably even sucked his cock, the coward."

Argus shifted. "His realm came into crossfire from another. He did what he had to to avoid further conflict. None of us know what kind of a position that's like to be in until our time comes."

"You may follow Axol’s lead but I will not! Are you all nothing but toothless worms? You insecurities make me sick and your sight enrages me. Out! Before I find a reason to war with each one of you!" Shao slammed his fist against the armrest. It splintered, shattering the structure of his seat. It didn't matter anymore because he was standing, pacing in aggravated upset.

In the thick of Shao’s rant, Argus made eye contact with Fujin and his brothers, warning him to give Shao time and peace to contain himself and his progressing rage. Everyone else in the room decided that would be best and left obediently to Shao’s demands.

"Wait."

Fujin was one of the last to depart. He paused, turning back to see if Shao had reeled himself back in. He hadn't. His essence still fumed with rage, but there was a lesser light in his eyes as he looked at him.

"Stay. Your company is more tolerable than the others."

Fujin chuckled. He returned, standing nearby Shao's still fuming form. "And what names would you bestow upon me if I was just as insufferable?"

Shao chuckled. “I have my lists.” He glanced at Fujin once before letting his entire frame fall back into his seat. It groaned and creaked under his deadweight. Fujin could already feel his weariness taking over his once unchecked anger. He was quiet for a time there. Fujin granted him the silence, knowing what a comfort it always was. "Do you think I am out of my reasonable sense of rationality? That I should kneel before I risk sudden retribution?"

Fujin leaned in closer, enough to lay a hand in comfort over the large god's shoulder. "I think you're brave. None of us know the outcome of our stances, and that's what frightens them."

Shao shifted. With one hand he removed his helm, and with his other he laid it across Fujin's. He looked so unprotected without his mask. Vulnerable. "But I am frightened." His fingers squeezed Fujin's palm and those eyes of his, usually so full of frightening aggression, looked up at Fujin with a wavering flame. "I will forever hold pride in my realm but even I can't face a multitude of aggressors. Already they agitate my boundaries."

Even though there was no word of expansion, Shinnok's seat certainly influenced a plethora of realms to roll over for him than face the possibility of his anger should he ever be moved to that. It made resisting realms like Outworld and Edenia worry over their current stability.

"Even if they all came at you at once, you would have me and my brethren." Fujin offered his support and his smile. Shao clung to his hand tighter.

"You might not think it in the chaos of things, but those words bring me comfort." Shao shook his head, sighing as his gaze wandered into the recess of his mind where worries were heavily guarded so that he would always appear ready and capable. "The Elder Gods proclaim they have a means to correct this disruption, but I have yet to see any action taken about it."

Fujin sighed, his lips falling in dismay. "They have lost twice to Shinnok. As much as I've come to despise them, even I wouldn't have them rush into a third defeat so quickly."

Shao chuckled. He turned his head to look up at Fujin. "Agreed, but just how long do they plan to keep us in wait? Eventually the other realms will grow bold and lash out, with or without Shinnok's approval. I would."

Fujin smiled. He patted Shinnok's other shoulder with his hand before leaning away. "Then we'll both be in prayer that none of the other deities have picked up your characteristics."

"Now, now, surely there's some redeeming qualities you don't find completely repulsive." Shao leaned forward, twisting to look toward Fujin better. It was as if he was trying to make up for his sidestepped distance. "I was faithful to my word and refused to impart your location when your brothers wandered Outworld looking for you."

Fujin's smile remained as he nodded. His bright eyes soft as he looked at Shao. "You did, but not without a form of payment to keep your mouth shut."

"What better way to ensure my lips are sealed than with your own?" Shao smiled. His teeth sharp but never gleaming in a threatening manner toward Fujin. In fact, as intimidating as Shao often looked, his face was tender toward him, soft and kind in that moment. And how he always found the opportunity to pull out some playful banter to divert the tumultuous turmoil sickening the universe endeared Fujin.

The god of wind laughed again, at least until Shao leaned over more to reach out and take up his hand. The touch pulled Fujin's eyes into Shao's. There was a look in them he's seen before but never took the time to examine.

"I regret letting you go," Shao said softly. "I know there's more you won't tell me and that is fine, but know that I can sense your wounded spirit. Don't think of me as a beast who lacks any understanding of emotion. I feel and hurt just as much as any other immortal and mortal. I can understand."

Fujin's eyes fell. "My hurt isn't meant to burden another."

"I would willingly carry it and you in my arms if you'd let me." Shao's hand tightened. Fujin could even feel his strong energies brushing against his own as if he were displaying his ability to stand strong and firm like a sturdy wall to lean against.

Shao had been a surprising friend in these times and a great host for Fujin and his brothers. He'd constantly been strong and supportive and often offered the finest of his land to his guests. His affections for the wind god was clear, especially now, but Fujin had no desire in shattering two hearts. Shao had a realm to look after and he couldn't do that to the fullest if his eyes wouldn't turn away from him.

Squeezing the hand back, Fujin took a step closer. "You flatter me, truly. However, I don't wish to stand in the way of your sacred duties. You've been good to your people, Shao, and to those seeking refuge here. My wish is that you continue doing so."

When Shao moved it was with a tug of his arm, ensuring Fujin came so close his knees bumped into the chair Shao was still sitting on. Those vibrant eyes of his never turned away. "What wrong would it be in standing together? Side by side." Gentler this time, Shao pulled Fujin's knuckles against his lips. "Our might combined would inspire the masses, as you constantly inspire me."

Fujin let out a breath. Shao was a surprising charmer. He would have never guessed.

"But look where I am. Aren't I already standing by your side?"

Shao kissed his hand again, murmuring his lips over the back. "You are and yet you're still farther away than what I desire."

The look on Shao's face when Fujin pulled his hand out of his grasp was one of agony, but when the wind god instead laid his touch along the Outworld deity's cheek, he closed his eyes and eagerly leaned into the touch. "I have my own desires, Shao. You have to give me the freedom to pursue them. If you grant me that then I would ask that you grace me with your companionship as my friend. Afterwards, I wouldn’t have any other hesitation against standing here beside you for as long as you wanted.”

Shao's hands came up and grasped the one against his face. He breathed and basked until he said, “I can do that." Then he looked at Fujin with that same fixed expression. "Just don't keep me waiting for long."

Shao was good on his word as well as his stance. He spearheaded the unpopular opinion in concern's to Shinnok's position of power, and while there was still an adding number of realms already falling in submission, Outworld's autonomy as well as its leadership tugged on hearts across the universe and brought in other sovereign deities with talks of proposing confederations.

It was around that time Fujin caught word of the Elder Gods and found details of their current ambitions. Ambitions that he could not allow.

The remaining four stood in a secluded canyon in Edenia. Argus was seated nearby, not among their company but his ears were. It was he who called in Fujin and his brothers the moment a certain topic became controversial.

"You plan to kill Raiden?" Fujin didn't care if he was called to the floor or not, he along with his brethren broke into the circle and glared at the Elder Gods.

They looked at them. Nothing in their eyes suggested they sympathized with his heavy concern. "Our aims are against Shinnok and Cetrion. We must have the third power out of the way for us to attempt any progress in our struggle against them."

"What sound strategy even is that? What will killing my brother do but push me further from your graces? And what of Cetrion and Shinnok? What sort of repercussions will they unleash once you destroy their affection?"

"Shinnok is unstable when he's upset, and vulnerable to his flaws. You were there beside Lady Kronika, we must stop him as soon as possible before he and Cetrion have the chance to reform. If your brother’s desolation can spare us all from the One Being’s wrath then it is a course we will take."

"Of course you will. It’s because Raiden means nothing to you, to any of you. You who were there when he came into existence, when he was honored with the duties of Earthrealm. And he served you faithfully, obeying your guidance and the wills you would exuded. Where is his reward for that loyalty? Is it in what Shinnok’s done to him? Is it in what Cetrion’s done to him? Is it in what you’ll do to him?” Fujin glared with a ferocity. His soul blazed. He wasn’t the only one upset, beside him his three brothers voiced their fervent grievances as well.

“What will you do if this fails?” Suiten demanded.

“What will you do if this succeeds?” Katen spoke up.

“Will the other immortals inevitably feel your _mercies_ like Raiden will?” Jiten looked near tears. He was shaking, trembling, they all were. And there was nothing Fujin could do to stop it, not when he was quivering himself.

“And how?” Fujin’s voice pitched, his teeth gritting. “How can you even proceed with this heinous plan when you’re all still so weak? You want to fight Shinnok and Cetrion? They’ll destroy you again, just as Raiden will.” And the darkest part of the wind god hoped his brother did tear them to shreds.

“The healing that time grants we unfortunately do not have,” they answered. “But once again we find our salvation in Raiden. Together we could not stop Shinnok and Cetrion, but together we can overpower Raiden and in his demise we will feed on his energies to enable us to finish our plight.”

Not only did the Elder Gods plan to kill Raiden but to devour him as well, all for the sake of their victories. There really was no honor in the defeated.

“Please.” Fujin’s voice was so low he was barely audible, but the gods looked at him. Every eye. “Please don’t do this.”

“There is no other way.”

There really wasn’t, was there? Fujin fell into conflict. His anger stirred against the Elder Gods, his faith revoked, however he understood the necessities of their actions. He understood and hated it so much. The part of him still bonded to Raiden urged him to go to Earthrealm and seek him out, to tell him of all the schemes the Elder Gods were devising against him, but in Fujin’s heart he knew he couldn’t, he just couldn’t further Shinnok’s reign. So there he was, at a loss for words, for breath, for any other idea how to handle his situation.

So Fujin fled. He whisked himself away from the Elder Gods’ presence as fast as he could so that they couldn’t see his bitterness or laugh at his pitiful fury against them. Where he fell was into the plains of an Edenian field. It was there in swaying grains that he collapsed entirely.

Weak as he may be from his disassociation from Earthrealm, Fujin’s might still moved the flora around him, circling his position and bending them all flat. Even the dirt below moved against his agony. And in his grief his entire body surged with painful emotions.

His inaction made Fujin feel like he was betraying his brother to an unawares fate. But as his heart pulled him toward his blood, toward the ties to Raiden, he felt sickness boil his insides. If he honored his brotherhood and warned him then their positions would never change. Fujin would still be a foreigner in his own realm and Raiden a slave to Shinnok’s desires.

In that moment of hopelessness, Fujin felt the tender touches of his brothers.

Fujin’s stinging eyes turned. He leaned back on his knees, looking at those surrounding him. Their eyes were like his; grief-riddled and pained. They brushed their distraught auras against his and carried one another during this time.

“Is there no other way?” Suiten asked, his voice soft.

They looked to Fujin. As eldest it was his duty to impart wisdom and reassurance, but all of that was stolen from him. His inability to find any means to get back what had been stolen from them shamed him. So he looked away from their needing gazes.

“It’s as the Elder Gods said. We can’t fight them,” Fujin said.

“No, but we can give them hell for it!” Katen burned, searing anything near him. His flames even touched Suiten who steamed at the collision. “Are we really going to do nothing while they move against our own brother?”

“We’d bring shame upon ourselves if we did nothing!” Jiten exclaimed, his fists clenched, the grounds quaking even in his restrained might.

“We’d bring shame if we did otherwise.” Fujin glared at his brothers, making sure they understood. They did, but their anger persisted, as did his. Soon enough, it all fell away into sadness.

Suiten sighed, his eyes closed. “Does this mean we’ll have to lose Raiden . . . all over again?”

“That’s if the Elder Gods even succeed,” Katen reminded. His eyes narrowed until the grief inside him became too strong. “But if they don’t then what will become of us?”

“We’ll probably end, just like the universe,” Jiten muttered. He sighed, but as he looked at each of his brother’s faces a small smile tugged his large lips. “But I don’t mind ending like this, beside each of you.”

“No.” All eyes turned to Katen. His arms trembled as he leaned on them, swaying closer to his brothers. “The end hasn’t come yet. Not mine, not yours, and not Raiden’s.” He looked toward Fujin then who had been silent. “Fujin, there is one last thing we can do.” Reaching forward he placed his hand over Fujin’s arm. The heat that sparked between their touch made Fujin jerk back.

“No!” Fujin stood, glaring down at his brother for daring suggest such a thing. He was shaking, his fists clenched. “You can’t—! Why would you—? Katen, do you even know what you’re asking?”

Katen stood, leveling his gaze with Fujin’s. “I do.” With a sigh, he looked toward the other two who looked just as troubled. “The Elder Gods are too worried about the One Being’s awakening that they disregard us and what we can do, especially together.” Katen reached out toward Fujin again, but the wind god backed away.

“No,” Fujin demanded. “I won’t allow it.”

“That’s not up to you anymore!” Katen’s voice echoed across the field. Fujin could feel his fright, but there was no uncertainty and that’s what pulled the wind god into his own fears. “There isn’t anything else, Fujin. Raiden’s done so much . . . he’s given up everything so that we can stand here. But for what? So that we can watch the realms unravel and him transform into someone we can’t even recognize? I won’t. I won’t do nothing when he did everything. I wouldn’t be able to honor his memory if I did.”

“How? How will this honor his sacrifices if you too—?” Fujin couldn’t look at Katen anymore. His eyes fell. He didn’t know what to do anymore, or what to say.

“It’s my choice, Fujin.” Katen’s face shifted. “You’ve got no right to take that from me.”

Fujin leaned forward. “And you’ve no right to force me to watch my brother die!” Katen was offering his life-force. Willing to merge it into Fujin to amplify his power. All so that their pitiful present strength would find a way to be enough to fight the ones seeking to tear their family apart. “It won’t be enough.” Fujin could feel the sting returning to his eyes. Maybe he was even trembling again. Who was to say?

“I know.” Katen nodded, his head bowing. “But it’s more than what we had before. And I know . . .” He looked back at Fujin, even offering him a small smile to try and encourage his decision. “I know you’ll use this to find a way. You always do.”

“With Katen’s and mine, you’ll stand a better chance.” Suiten came alongside his fiery brother, both now looking at Fujin with surety.

Fujin shook his head. His heart shattering all over again. “No, not you too, Suiten.”

“And me as well.”

Fujin turned to watch Jiten approach him from behind. His brethren surrounded him, each offering their sadness and grief, but not once did Fujin feel a sliver of regret in them and he wanted to so bad so that he could use it and expand it and force them to stop. But they didn’t. Their minds were made up.

“Don’t, please.” Fujin’s head fell, his eyes clenched shut. “Don’t do this to me. Who am I if I lose all of you?” Then he felt a hand along his back. Jiten held him there.

“You’re the one who’ll save Raiden.”

Fujin felt the first wave then. Jiten dissolved himself completely and melted into nothing but energy. This energy collided with Fujin’s essence and tumbled until it was absorbed entirely. In the process the wind god shook, he couldn’t stop the tears anymore.

Suiten went next. His lingering essence pressed into Fujin coolly, sending a chill throughout his body as it mingled down every corner and rushed every atom he was constructed of. He lost his breath, his eyes glowing and his power intensifying to the point the flora around were swept away and the earth below moved. But it wasn’t over, not yet.

Katen stood there. He couldn’t cry, but Fujin could feel his tears, the ones he had for the loss of his brothers. As he looked at Fujin there was a plea, one that left all hope in him to save their remaining brother. With that Katen broke apart and inserted his fiery soul into Fujin.

The fires consumed Fujin and he let out a cry—whether it was from pain or grief was hard to tell. His body pulled taught until the colliding energies of the elements finally bonded coherently and morphed into the currents of Fujin’s essence. In a rippling effect, what was left of his brothers shuttered outward, disappearing into the area around never to return to individual forms again. All that remained was their power and their power was now Fujin’s.

Falling to his knees, Fujin sobbed into the charred dirt. His hands clutched at his chest, fingers digging into his sternum as if trying to aid his hammering heart that was about to quit on him. He remained that way for a time unknown but when he could find his voice, when he could form coherent words, he shouted into the skies.

“Elder Gods!” The winds rolled around him, tossing tree and cloud alike. “Elder Gods!” He knew they were still within the realm and he knew they could hear him. “Elder Gods!” His voice broke with bubbling moans mixed with sobs. He did all he could to call them to him. Finally, they came.

He could feel them. Even as Fujin lay there hunched over, his forehead pressed to the ground, he could feel the four lingering over him, looking down at him with curious eyes. The one he still shared vision with helped him see himself. He looked pitiful so alone, but so very terrifying with so much might.

“What have you done?” He heard one of them say. He could even feel their surprise in noticing the absence of his three brethren. They knew.

“Elder Gods.” Fujin shifted, somehow propping himself up on his trembling arms. He looked as if he was bowing to them. “Please. Let me face Raiden.” There was silence and from that Fujin turned his wet eyes toward them. “Don’t forsake him. Don’t forsake me.” Fujin’s eyes burned, swirled, shifted, and fluttered all at once. Another pulse of flame brushed out of him along his winds. It wasn’t easy to handle all of the elements. “There is a way. Please.”

The silence persisted, but now the gods looked toward one another in quiet decision. Their eyes narrowed when they turned back toward Fujin. “It is a risk we cannot take if Raiden remains as he is.”

“Then aid me in cleansing him. I know it can be done!” Fujin’s hands dug into the dirt. The ground shuddered beneath him.

The gods continued in their wariness. “It can, but at a price for us all.”

“It is one I will gladly pay.” Fujin knelt down again, praying to each of them that they see the pureness of his heart and intentions and trust him.

Perhaps it was his bare desperation or even his mounted grief that turned their hearts toward Fujin in the end. Whatever it was, the Elder Gods took pity on him and conceded to his wishes. They even granted him time to situate the powers swelling inside him. And in that time Argus came into understanding of all that had happened.

Edenia’s protector god stood over the lip of an arching hill, only a distance where Fujin stood, trying as hard as he could to work the flow of his new might into his motions. There was pity Argus’ eyes, Fujin could even see its shine from where he stood. Could even hear him.

“Did it have to be this way?” Argus asked with a leveling tone.

Fujin stretched his arms out, water curled around his forearms, ending in steam as they met the flames dancing along his fingers. With a shake of his limbs he snuffed them away. His shoulders rolling and the ground beneath him shifting.

“I don’t know,” Fujin muttered into the winds. As he turned back toward Argus he noticed he had come closer. Now there was a look on his face that preceded words to convince him out of the actions he planned to take.

“Will this even work?” Argus ran his eyes over Fujin and the way his energies still shifted roughly with his new might. “If it doesn’t then they would have done all of this in vain.”

“I have to do this.” Fujin looked at Argus. He didn’t bother hiding the grief. “You should understand why.”

Argus sighed, nodding his head. “My prayers are with you, Fujin, and with Raiden.”

Fujin nodded in return, clasping his hands together and bowing. Argus returned the gesture. “You have my eternal gratitude for all you’ve done for me and my brothers. If I may request you send my regards to the others who have done the same. And for Shao, could you give him a message for me?”

Argus blinked. “What is it?”

Fujin was quiet for a moment, combing through his words, through the ones he wanted to say and those he should say. Finally, he replied, “Tell him that I regret he’ll be kept waiting.” With those words Fujin left the god and his realm.

The eyes of the Elder Gods were with Fujin when he landed in Earthrealm, but the moment his connection the world strengthened, the powers flowing through him that he struggled so hard to maintain riled and made him shake. With a gasp his bright eyes fluttered when a powerful burst of congested energy shot from him. It was unintentional but flew out like a beacon regardless, luring in the one he had come there for.

Raiden.

"Fujin." The higher pitch in Raiden's voice serenaded Fujin's heart. It almost sounded as if the thunder god was happy to see him. But there he stood, eyes glowing like fiery coals, sparks pulsing down his frame in those unnatural patterns. He was the same as he had left him, still a Shinnok replica.

Good.

That's what Fujin would use.

"I am glad you've returned." Raiden's lips twitched as he came forward. His arms were outstretched as if he expected his brother to run into them. Fujin held his distance and made sure Raiden held his.

"Where is Shinnok?" Fujin had been informed by the Elder Gods that the fallen one had to travel to the Netherrealm due to certain dissent, but he wanted to validate he really was off realm.

"Gone," Raiden replied. "Seeing to matters elsewhere."

Fujin nodded. He was quiet for a moment. Even a small smile formed across his lips. "It's strange. I didn't think you'd be so far from him."

Raiden didn't seem to catch the mocking undertones, instead he answered in kind, "Though I cherish our time together, Lord Shinnok often bids me remain here in Earthrealm. So I do what I can to tend to it while he is away."

Fujin's eyes softened, falling back to times not so long ago. "You were always a good steward. I understand why he trusts you." He made to say more but a sudden quake shuddered through him and made him bend forward. Surprisingly, Raiden was to his side immediately. "Please, I'm fine."

"Fujin?" Raiden's eyes roamed over the wind god with heavy confusion.

Wincing, Fujin straightens himself, pulling away from his brother's touch. "There's no need for concern." If his brother could feel any at all. But Fujin was nearly fooled. The softening expressions on Raiden's face and that flicker in his eyes nearly made him believe that that piece of his brother was still there.

Raiden observed him silently for a moment. Fujin wondered if he could sense it. If he did he didn't say anything, instead he said, "Come, let me host you."

Raiden turned and rose his arms but Fujin stepped forward with a gust of wind. "Not there,” he said, “I don't want to travel far." He knew Shinnok was absent but Cetrion remained. He couldn't risk her intervening so Fujin had no other choice but to pull Raiden away from that dark palace.

He couldn't tell what Raiden thought about his request as he looked back at him. All he could do was hope he'd heed his wish.

With a nod, Raiden's hat fell over his eyes. "Very well. There's a temple a few miles away. I will see that you are accommodated admirably there."

Fujin knew this temple. It had been struck during Shinnok's invasion but hadn’t suffered much save for the slaughter of its residents. Now it was filled with slaves of every race, running back and forth to mend old portions, clean the interior, garden the ravished courtyards, and prepare meals for his arrival.

Upon entry beside Raiden every soul fell to the floor in trembling bows. Fujin's eyes glazed over them with pity while Raiden walked over them and led him further inward. Into the hall sat tables and chairs, precious furnish nestled around and a mound of tributes was already piling just behind the seats they were to take.

Fujin remained tense as he dined with Raiden, as he watched how he treated the staff and even the oni meant to keep the temple bastioned. His attitude varied from similar to Raiden's persona before his transformation to one of arrogant pride Shinnok had no doubt designed.

Even as Raiden looked at him, Fujin felt his conflicts rise. Subconsciously he believed he was looking at his own brother, but in his heart he saw the truth—and that's why it continued to hurt.

"Is there something wrong, Fujin? You don't look well." Raiden reached forward to lay his hand on Fujin's but Fujin would not let him. Instead he leaned away and let his hands fall into his lap.

"I'm fine." Fujin even turned his eyes away, staring at the plates laid before them. He hadn't touched a bite.

"Is the food not to your liking?" Fujin saw an emotion a lot like fury glowing in Raiden's eyes. In no way did he want to sentence the cooks to death.

Shaking his head, Fujin said, "It's not that."

"Then it's the service. You must forgive them, brother, those that work here are impotent. They have not yet learned absolute respect for deities such as us."

Fujin shook his head again. "No, I have no grief with the servants." No matter what he said, Raiden's frown deepened.

With a sigh the thunder god leaned back, his fingers drumming along the table anxiously. "I shouldn't have brought you here. You deserve better than this pile of rotting stone." He stood then, looking back at Fujin. "Come, I will take you to the palace."

"Why?" Fujin still held his gaze away, his hands threaded together tightly.

"Because it's . . ." Finally Fujin looked at him, watching how Raiden paused. Finally, their eyes locked and for a moment Fujin believed he was looking at Raiden. “I want to treat you well. I want to provide you with luxuries and shower you with fineries. I want to give you reason to stay. I miss you, Fujin. I want you to come back and live here again, with me.”

His heart beat a little stronger then. Fujin’s lips twitched as if he wanted to smile. Maybe he did. Hearing Raiden say those things felt nice . . . even if they might just be phrases.

“And if I have to show you then I will.” Raiden leaned forward. “Please, come with me to the palace. Let me treat you as you should be treated.” He held out his hand in offering. Fujin stared at it. He wanted to take it, to bask in Raiden’s company for the rest of eternity afterward, but his heart was too jaded for that.

Instead, Fujin was going to offer polite rebuttal. He never got the chance as a quake shuddered through him and made him hunch over in pain.

“Fujin!” Raiden was kneeling beside him, his hands on him, steadying him. “By the One Being what has happened to you?” Then Fujin felt him still. He could sense it. With as close as he was Fujin knew he could sense the change. “Where . . . where are the others?”

Even if he wasn’t Raiden anymore, Fujin still couldn’t bring himself to look him in the eyes. Instead he clutched the hand pressing against his torso. “They’re here, with us.” They always will be.

Fujin’s Raiden would have fallen into dismay. He would have hailed down lightning and risen up tempests. He would have mourned for their loss, and he would have never spoken to Fujin again, but this Raiden wasn’t the same. Instead he said nothing, his essence shuddering only slightly before his hands fell curiously.

“This new power,” Raiden muttered. “You don’t yet have control over it.”

Fujin nodded, taking hold of Raiden’s wandering hand, ensuring that it didn’t move any further than his abdomen. “I’m trying.” With a sigh, Fujin clung to Raiden’s hand. He looked at him, finally. “Will you help me?”

Both gods left the temple and moved into the courtyards. Once it had been symmetrical and neat and filled with meditating and sparring monks, now it lay overlain with hanging flora, vines winding around columns and over old statues, covering once familiar pathways and trodden trails. It was still just as quiet, still had space to move one’s foot and more than enough for two to fluctuate their energies.

Fujin stood with his knees bent and legs stretched, his arms were out at first before he slowly brought them together, twisting his body as he did so. Raiden stood before him, watching him, observing the way he moved and navigated his essence. It was unintentional for him to lose his balance from a ground shift, but it brought Raiden closer because of so.

Raiden stood behind him a pace away. He moved his body outward, Fujin did the same. When Raiden shifted, so did Fujin. They used to do this all the time before the days became dark. Reminiscing in such physical ways almost made Fujin forget why he was there.

Another unstable shock pushed Fujin off balance. He grimaced, his fists clenching. He needed to learn to control these powers gifted to him, not only for what he needed them for then but what he needed them later.

It was Raiden who took pity on him, offering his patience as he held his form, waiting for Fujin to join him again. Fujin inevitably did, now standing on a single leg with both hands clapped together.

“Relax,” Raiden said. “These new abilities will take time to maintain, remember that so your body doesn’t rush to overwhelm them. Let them overwhelm you.” Raiden shifted, Fujin followed. “Let this power mold you, shift you, transform you. Embrace all of its might and then ascend.”

Closing his eyes, Fujin nearly lost himself in the meditation. It helped, but he needed his mind focused on more than just controlling of his newfound abilities. Raiden’s words were inspiring but worrisome at the same time in that they invoked a suspicious wonder if that advice had been given to Raiden before his own metamorphosis.

When Fujin looked back he took in Raiden. His brother was leveled, his eyes closed and his aura fully controlled. Even in Fujin’s amplified status he could feel their mass difference in power. If they fought Raiden would destroy Fujin. His power more than rivaled all of the elementals combined. But Fujin had to detain Raiden, at least for so long.

With an exhaling breath, Fujin closed his eyes again, falling into a stance with his arms out forward and fingers touching. It was only when he was perfectly still and perfectly at peace with the choice he made that he opened his energies and presented them to his brother. He could feel Raiden shift quickly after, and then his eyes were on him.

Nothing was said for a moment. So Fujin shifted, arching down into a near crouch before rising up with a kick of wind. Raiden was still watching, still doing nothing.

“Fujin.” Raiden’s voice was soft, but it came after so much passed silence that it seemed to echo across the courtyard. “What are you doing?”

This time Fujin came out of his stance. He twisted around, his eyes glowing at Raiden. It was the first time he’d looked at him since he opened his energies to him. Those red eyes of his looked hungry.

“Does it displease you?” The corner of Fujin’s mouth twitched upward, especially as he reached his aura out and moved it along Raiden’s. His brother twitched at the action and after that he came closer.

Fujin relaxed himself, even as Raiden moved so close to him that his chest brushed his back. His eyes fell down to the hands that came out, lightly dragging fingers along his sides before settling on his hips. The grip slowly tightened. He could feel Raiden leaning over him, gnawing at the attractive energy presented before him.

“Fujin,” he heard Raiden gasp again. The hands holding him began to hurt. “Your power, it’s delicious.”

The hammering of Fujin’s heart helped him move away. Helped him stand there, turned to Raiden who looked ready to force him back into his arms. “Then taste it.”

With a gleam in his eyes, Fujin broke away with a wind that flew him from the temple. The skies above darkened after his departure and it wasn’t long after that that he began to hear the rumble of thunderous warnings. It had just started to rain when Fujin landed at an old shrine a distance away. Its patchy canopy helped hide him from the downpour but not from his pursuer.

Raiden arrived quickly after. He cornered Fujin until he’d have to fight him to escape. Fujin didn’t move when his brother wound his arms around him, nor did he fight the lips descending against his skin, sucking at his energies as they did so.

“A-Ah!” Fujin’s eyes widened when he felt one of Raiden’s hands slink between them and grip his groin. And as the thunder god squeezed, so too did Fujin squeeze his eyes shut.

His own arms wound around Raiden, encouraging the hold, the distraction. As Raiden palmed him, Fujin let himself fall against the rising pleasures as well as the tingles he felt each time his brother’s lips pressed against his skin. The sensations made him tremble, but when his legs began to fail him, Raiden’s hold was the anchor that held him up.

As Fujin leaned heavier into his arms, Raiden pulled back slightly. He looked at him, the light of their eyes mingling. A flash of lightning struck behind them, a signal for Raiden to move forward. Fujin allowed him to press his lips against his, and encouraged him to keep them there as he fluttered his own against his brother’s mouth.

Fujin’s lack of resistance emboldened Raiden. It didn’t take long before his groping hand moved into the wind god’s pants and brushed warm skin against warm skin. His teeth nibbled Fujin’s lips until they were red and puffed, only after that did he force them open with an intruding tongue. Fujin gasped when the muscle came into his mouth and as it tingled him from the inside out. He couldn’t hold his stance any longer.

Raiden’s arms steadied Fujin, helping guide him down onto the damp floors of the shrine. He shifted, moving over Fujin, refusing to pull his lips away from him. His hands moved, splayed on either side of the wind god whilst Raiden rolled his hips against Fujin’s.

The lusts for power moving through Raiden attracted the god to his heightened brother, and Fujin used this transformative disposition to pull him closer, and closer. He wound his legs around Raiden’s hips, moving along with his gyrations. With a gasp he felt his entire body shudder when he felt Raiden’s firmness press against his crotch.

They moved like that for some time while the rains raged overhead and the thunder rolled. When they were both gasping out the pains of their aches, Raiden shifted, pulling his body back to lean on his knees. His hand came down Fujin’s face, thumb rubbing his jaw affectionately. Fujin couldn’t help but press into the touch, holding onto the hand even as its touch tugged until Fujin was forced to meet Raiden’s mouth again.

Raiden sucked on Fujin’s lips, devouring small portions of the power simultaneously. It didn’t hurt as much as Fujin had thought it would, in fact Raiden did a very good job at feeding subtly, ensuring the wind god’s mind focused solely on the pleasures his body was receiving than the strength that was depleting. And what sensations they were. Currently Raiden’s fingers were wandering down his chest, Fujin could feel them untying binds and popping clasps. When his chest was revealed, those sparking hands took their time roaming over his skin, dipping over his curves and muscles in such a way that made him tremble.

The moment Fujin gasped against the touch of rubbing fingers along his nipples, Raiden had taken hold of his tongue and suckled. He pinched him and twisted the buds whilst running his own tongue against Fujin’s, and with another thrust against his hips, Fujin found himself panting, his body tense and reacting. When Raiden finally released his tongue and moved a pace away from his mouth, he instead fell to Fujin’s jaw and then his throat. He lingered there the most while his hands roamed down further.

“Nmm!” Fujin’s eyes fluttered while Raiden bit along his neck, sucking against his skin while his hands unbound his pants and slipped them lower. Fingers traced him, running down the jut of his hips and then over toward the soft hairs of his crotch. They combed down until they began to tease the tender skin of his cock. Just a simple touch and Fujin felt himself twitch, his ache throbbing along with the strengthening pulse of his groin.

The moment Raiden had fully wound his hand around the length of Fujin’s cock the wind god burst into flame. Fujin’s eyes were wide, staring up at his brother helplessly, but despite the singed garment and heat brushing against Raiden’s face he only ever looked down at Fujin with continual desire. In reaction Raiden set himself against the flames, bolts covered his form and his eyes blazed with pure energy. His and Fujin’s collision canceled Fujin’s flames and in his gasping relief, Raiden once again kissed him.

It was as if Raiden was telling him to relinquish his resistance, to follow him and where he led him, just like the way their bodies moved as soon as he began pumping Fujin’s cock. Moans and groans snuck out between their lips, Fujin’s brows furrowed as his face twisted at the experience of it all. Feeling Raiden’s hand on him, his thumb rubbing the weeping tip of his penis became too much. He nearly lost himself entirely.

“Raiden . . .” Fujin pulled his mouth away. His brother didn’t chase his lips this time. Instead he remained there, watching him as Fujin laid his body back down, bucking against his hold and groaning into the rumbling air around them. It was just like that how Raiden watched Fujin come undone.

Fujin’s shame mingled with the rains dripping into the shrine. Raiden’s hand finally stopped when every spurt had left him. With his heart hammering, Fujin struggled with whether to open his eyes or keep them closed. He could still feel his brother staring at him and with the way his warm hand clung to him he knew it wasn’t over.

In the finality of his orgasm, Fujin felt the grounds quake. His energies soared and their formation lured Raiden to devour a portion of it. Fujin trembled from the action, expecting his brother to take more, but he didn’t. Instead he leaned down, moving his body until his hands grasped Fujin’s thighs, spreading them.

The moment Raiden took hold of Fujin’s limp cock and shoved it into his mouth was the moment Fujin’s eyes opened wide and his body stirred to life again. He was throbbing inside Raiden’s mouth while he moved, bobbing his head with a steady rhythm while his hands held Fujin’s hips down. He could feel the currents Raiden sent out, traveling down his fingers and through his palms to make Fujin’s muscles dance. Even the subtle trills felt around his cock made Fujin realize just how extensively his brother was using his power.

Hands strained, Fujin had to cling to something. So he dug his fingers into the grass beneath him, his teeth clenched as his body struggled to move. Raiden’s oral skill took Fujin’s breath away and his soul further into euphoria. But even in such pleasures Fujin’s mind darkened into thoughts of this experience.

Was it Shinnok who taught Raiden to use his mouth like this? Was it that bastard who demanded him kneel before him with lips parted and mouth ready? These thoughts disrupted Fujin’s pleasure and he began to deflate in his depression. However, Raiden seemed to realize this and immediately shifted his head, sucking harder, his tongue lapping at the tender skin along the bottom throb, and its charge pulled Fujin back into firmness.

Now Fujin’s hands fell on Raiden’s head, fingers digging into his leather hood as he sucked everything out of him. Fujin shook out moans now that Raiden allowed him to move, and he did. Bucking into Raiden’s mouth sent previously unknown pleasures shattering every corner of Fujin’s form. As soon as he felt himself brush along the back of the thunder god’s throat, Fujin’s wide eyes brightened. His eagerness to release that mounting coil inside him intensified.

Fujin bucked faster, thrusting in as far as he could go while Raiden leisurely rubbed his testicles. And when his fingers slid further down, Fujin clenched himself, his thighs clutching his brother’s head as he grinded into him. He was so close that he was near tears, and Raiden let him seek that end on his own.

His second orgasm came the moment Raiden had pushed a finger into him. His tight muscles fluttered along to the same beat as his throbbing cock staining Raiden’s orifice. And Raiden drank him, sucking Fujin even after the waves of bliss fell stale. Aside from Raiden’s mouth, Fujin’s attention pulled to the heat emitting from his brother’s inserted digit.

It didn’t hurt. Most of what Raiden did to him was without pain as much as possible. Even when the finger began to move, back and forth, in and out, it caused Fujin no sense of discomfort. Instead he took the new sensation with gripping hands, both holding onto Raiden’s shoulders as he moved inside him with gentle patience.

A sighing gasp broke the silence when Raiden leaned down to kiss the inside of Fujin’s thigh. His skin twitched at the contact, his muscles shuddering at the charge it was given. Raiden did that often, his electricity laid wherever he roamed and Fujin had once been used to the charges, but now, it was nearly overwhelming, especially in the ways he touched him.

There were two fingers inside him now, moving in the same manner while Raiden began to palm Fujin’s groin again. The wind god looked down at his brother between his legs, he was staring at him and as soon as their eyes met Raiden leaned forward, moving back over him and kissing him. Fujin cringed at the obvious distinctive taste of himself along Raiden’s tongue, but continued to relent to its exploration of his well-mapped mouth. That was when Raiden’s fingers spread.

Fujin moaned into the thunder god’s mouth, winding his arms around his neck as Raiden encouraged his hips to move to the way the penetrative digits did. It grew harder to do so when he forced three into him and more so when he had four fingers stretching him out. Fujin’s head lulled back, his eyes falling shut as one of Raiden’s hands moved his hips in time to his fingers’ thrusts. In time it didn’t alarm him as much.

Kisses fell along his shoulders and down his arms, Fujin knew Raiden was following the patterns of his markings and it made him shiver every time those lips left, making him roll in agony over wondering where they’d press to next. He felt weaker now, not only from the stress of pleasures but his very aura. Raiden had been dining on him the entire time, doing so without Fujin noticing, or at least when he did he’d divert that attention back to the way his body could quake in ecstasy.

Raiden bucked against him, his hips colliding with Fujin’s in the same motion of those plunging fingers. It was to ensure the motion was familiar and as soon as Fujin grew accustomed to it the fingers were removed. Lifting himself up on his elbows, Fujin watched Raiden lean away, pulling at his robes and dropping all fine articles to fall just as bare as the wind god.

Fujin watched as jagged currents rushed over Raiden’s body, running over unfamiliar markings. Before, Raiden’s markings had been softer, their lines more curved and rounded. Now they overlaid his skin in crooked patterns, and intimidating images. Fujin didn’t get the chance to look at them for long when Raiden came back over him, nestling between his legs.

While used to their sensual movement, Fujin still gasped at their closeness. Surprisingly, Raiden hadn’t reprimanded him for his sudden rush of fear. Instead he caressed his face, offering him the tenderest of touches as he brought his own cock against Fujin’s and rubbed them together. Fujin stiffened, his body going tense from the sudden jolt of pleasure. Raiden bucked while his hand palmed them together, he did so again and again and again until Fujin ached.

“B-Brother!” Fujin gasped as Raiden laid his mouth over his neck again, his hips ever moving against Fujin’s waiting for him to respond and as soon as he did, he shifted. Fujin shook, his hands digging into the skin of his brother’s back when he felt him push into him. Teeth clenched, Fujin felt the grounds shift again when Raiden bucked against him, sliding his cock into him until their bodies completely merged.

Fujin’s wide eyes stared up at the leaking ceiling of the shrine canopy. Forcing himself to focus on the collection of dripping water than the throbbing stretch inside him, or the way his body rolled to it, wanting more. His arms clung as Raiden moved against him, grip tight just as his stretching muscles were.

“That’s it.” Fujin felt Raiden gasp against his skin. He kissed along the markings over his pectoral. One kiss brushed his nipple. “Accept this. Accept me.” When Fujin looked back at Raiden he could see how delirious he was from the pleasures he took as well as the essence he lapped at. His hands moved, sliding up the expanse of his broad back to his face, and it was there Fujin caressed him and then pulled him closer to kiss.

Raiden was gentle with Fujin. Even in his obvious want to simply ravage the wind god’s body, he took his time which helped Fujin get used to the stretch and his girth. It was only when he sensed comfort seep into Fujin’s aura that Raiden felt it suitable to pick up his pace. From there he showed him how to hang over the edge of release.

Fujin arched, chest heaving as it pressed in Raiden’s torso. He shook against his brother’s powerful rocks, falling to pieces even more when he felt Raiden reach between them and squeeze his cock. His hand moved to the beat of their pace and it pulled Fujin further into their sensual dance.

Feeling Raiden so deeply inside him made Fujin’s body tremble more. His thighs hung spread, quivering as they rubbed against Raiden’s moving hips. Feeling him stretch him felt amazing after Fujin finally accepted the intrusion and his place. His muscles clenched, finding deep thrill in the way Raiden’s charged skin rubbed against their tender walls, and it was these sensations that had the wind god arching and ending himself with an eruption of white ribbons between them.

Even at the rising shame that appeared when Fujin watched Raiden bring up his semen coated hand, the rush of his heart only threatened to raise his cock again. Raiden smeared Fujin’s mess over his chest, his fingers rubbing his neck while he kissed him again, rocking into him so perfectly and easily. All of it enough to harden him again.

As the inward sensations brought Fujin back to a throbbing firmness, it wasn’t long after that he began to feel his brother swell inside him. While still as gentle as possible, Raiden picked up his pace, slinking in deeply, stretching into new depths, and rubbing every arousing nerve he could find.

Fujin’s eyes fluttered, feeling every inch of his brother. The pleasure that shuddered through him overwhelmed any rising shame. So Fujin clutched him close, his fingers bending into Raiden’s charged skin especially when he felt him swell inside him. His thickening girth made the wind god gasp out a cry, one that brought Raiden to his end.

Feeling Raiden’s orgasm was a sensation all its own. A dull sting remained along his stretched muscles, it made Fujin moan, but the way Raiden filled him made him gasp, especially as it stretched him further. He had been so focused on those feelings that he almost missed the subtle tug along of his energies. Blinking back toward Raiden, Fujin watched him as he fed from him again while he rocked himself, milking every pleasure he could as his own aura heightened on the vitalizing power he took from his brother.

Moaning in pleasure, Raiden arched back, his eyes fluttering as he relished in the energies he feasted on, and the body he lost himself in.

They laid there, gasping, shaking, clinging to one another. Raiden’s hands roamed, caressed, while Fujin’s fingers dug into skin and eyes blinked to keep away his tears. He could feel the gasps of Raiden’s breath along his shoulder even when it moved over his neck just as recurring kisses did. The storm had yet to subside.

Fujin let out a breath when Raiden pulled away. He hovered over him, his hands moving over chest and collar. Reaching just above, Fujin felt Raiden tangle his fingers into his hair, unraveling the ties and combing through his braid.

“Are you satisfied, brother?” Fujin knew the answer, but laid there still, ready for him.

Raiden didn’t say anything for a time. Instead his fingers roamed through Fujin’s ivory locks. It was only after another flash of lightning that Raiden finally responded. “No.”

Fujin nodded. He shifted only a little, trying to find any sort of comfort on the uneven ground beneath him. Then he spread his arms and brought his hands down Raiden’s shoulders, then down his arms. His legs bent, revealing even their intimate connection. “Then come and have me again.”

Raiden didn’t hesitate to take Fujin’s offer. His way with him that time around was rougher. It made Fujin shudder out louder moans and groans, these of which seemed to entice his brother into tighter gropes and grasps. Nipples were twisted, skin bitten into, and thighs clawed. Raiden had Fujin by the ass as he rammed into him, pushing him towards his hips just as he rocked forward.

When his orgasm washed throughout him, Fujin marveled that he hadn’t been so much as touched. Raiden brought him to his end through aimed hips and his lips alone. And it all made Fujin slip away more. Raiden had him three more times like that and after the last round Fujin wondered if he was showing signs of exhaustion.

Raiden was quivering, his arms shaking after he finished riding out his fifth orgasm. The mess between their legs pooled beneath them from the amount of their expunged fluids. Fujin groaned at the fullness he felt inside him, aside from Raiden’s own throbbing length he was given so much of his cum that he felt as if he bordered on bursting.

Fujin gasped when Raiden leaned down and attached his lips to his discolored neck. Eyes clenched shut, Fujin could feel his brother stirring again and he could feel him drain him. But before Raiden could even start another pace, Fujin pushed against him and continued to do so until Raiden leaned back in surprise. In the end Fujin had him seated back, with himself sprawled across his lap.

Hands cupped Raiden’s puzzled face and then pulled him closer. Fujin kissed him, moving his legs until they were on either side of his hips. From there he began the pace, rising up and then sinking down to take in his brother. This time Fujin kept his eyes on Raiden, staring into his own as they built up pleasures together.

Hands clung to his hips, almost threatening to take over their movement, but Fujin grasped them in return, squeezing them with warning. This time he’d bring Raiden into the pleasure he sought and he did. He watched Raiden lean back, eyes fluttering and mouth parting with quiet moans of bliss.

Leaning in closer, Fujin ran his lips down Raiden’s neck, grating his teeth across his skin as he had done to his. His hands roamed, brushing over ribs and then behind, down an arching spine. Raiden’s reactions rocked through him, especially through his cock that twitched inside Fujin, throbbing until it peaked.

Fujin gasped, arms wound securely around Raiden’s neck. He rolled his hips, helping Raiden enjoy the ripples of his orgasm for as long as he could. And then after that, Fujin rode him again.

When he simply couldn’t go on, when Raiden had finally brought him to the point of spiritual exhaustion, Fujin shuddered to a halt. His last orgasm was dry, void of anything else he had left. Raiden sat beneath him, clinging to him, his face laid against Fujin’s chest, listening to the wild race of his heart.

Raiden’s embrace was stronger than ever. Having dined on Fujin’s essence he carried on in might and stamina. Though Fujin believed he had pleased him and more than enough eased any tension out of him, the wind god was still so tired and hoped his brother didn’t expect they carry on.

Tipping over, Fujin felt Raiden catch him, keeping him seated in his lap. A gentle hand ran down his heaving back, and another through his matted hair. Raiden’s eyes locked with his and then he smiled.

After a short kiss, Raiden pulled away. Fujin’s weary eyes widened, gleaming as he watched his brother open himself for him. And what a magnificent sight it was. Fujin could see his brother’s aura clearly. Reds with subtle markings of faded bluish white. Lights pulsed in and out of it, swirling like a whirlpool. Its sheer magnitude took the wind god’s breath away and his need to recover from all he was drained of surged inside him.

He did it. Fujin rendered Raiden and all his power vulnerable. Now all he had to do was take.

A hand laid against the back of Fujin’s head, offering a gentle push forward. He looked at Raiden who said, “Take as much as you want.” Then there was another push. That was when Fujin finally cried.

Leaning his head against Raiden’s shoulder, Fujin’s eyes clenched as his tears cascaded out of him. He heaved, trembling as his grief overtook the lull of post pleasure. This alarmed the thunder god.

“Fujin?” Raiden’s hands slid up Fujin’s back. He shifted until he leaned the wind god away a little, his hand tilting his chin so that he could look at him. “What’s wrong?”

Shuddering out a sob, Fujin’s trembling hands reached up and took hold of Raiden’s. He held it close to him, wetting the knuckles with his falling tears. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I should have been there for you, but I was too weak to stand beside you. Look at you now, you’ve got the face of my brother but everything you do breaks my heart and I . . . I still can’t stop loving you.”

Fujin could feel Raiden brushing his aura against his, wondering over his sudden sadness. But this grief had been there from the start and now with his eyes opened could the thunder god see it.

Inhaling a quaking breath, Fujin’s moist eyes looked at Raiden the best he could. “Forgive me, Raiden. I couldn’t save you from this fate, but now I hope I’m strong enough to be with you for what’s to come. I love you, I always will, even when eternity ends.”

Raiden’s face shifted. And through Fujin’s tears he morphed into the one his heart yearned for. He really had been there, all this time.

Only a portion, and not even that, was what Fujin allowed himself to take from Raiden’s energies. And it was enough to will him further into what he had to do. With his eyes closed, Fujin bows his head and releases Raiden’s hand. His entire body lit up, ablaze with rising flames and then awash with gurgling waters. Just as the ground shifted and the winds whipped, Fujin vanished altogether, his body dissolving. Raiden’s eyes widened, his body jumping as he felt the stinging bite of supernatural shackles clamp around his wrists and his ankles, each one bearing the symbol of the element used to hold him.

Raiden struggled against the binds. His startle polluted the skies with heavier clouds that cracked thunder and spewed lightning. He wasn’t allowed to struggle long before four visitors came to confront him.

Wide eyes stared up at the opposing Elder Gods, and just as Raiden bore a snarl and made to move against them the binds cut into his wrists, pulling his arms back and then out as if some form of invisible chains kept him in place.

“What have you done?!” Raiden sparked, his eyes glowing as he glared up at the Elder Gods. He pulled against his shackles, but their strength held. “You think these will keep me? I will break them!”

“In time you may, but we ensure to finish what we came here for long before you do.” When they pulled out a golden amulet Raiden’s eyes narrowed in caution. When the medallion began to glow and pull at Raiden’s very makeup the god began to scream.

He struggled against his binds. Raiden did all he could to fight against the force holding him down, holding him back from attacking the four Elder Gods. But the might of the mysterious device took all his physical ambitions, pulling the very strength from his spirit. It ripped apart the seams that had sewed him together, latching onto the pieces that formed him and then dragging it all back, away, out of him.

As what he was began to crumble, the pain of Raiden’s deconstruction shook him. He lost all breath, all thought. His wide eyes watched as the pulling energies grabbed at him, tearing at any piece of him that it could until it gathered what it stole into a congested mass and sucked it all up into the gem at its center.

His body shook, seizing in agony. Through grinding teeth Raiden screamed. His eyes fell, clenched shut while white static erupted behind his eyelids. The light that moved around him flickered, faltering like the light in his eyes. His skin paled and weathered, his muscles shrunk, losing all definition.

“You’re going to kill him!” Raiden could faintly hear a muffled voice. It sounded concerned. It sounded close, but so far away all at once. His eyes opened, the four Elder Gods were quiet, looking at him and what they were doing to him. One stepped forward, closer; the one who held the amulet.

“It must be done if we are to reform him in our image.” He watched the god’s lips move, heard what he said but after that his vision faltered and he fell slack in his shackles.

Only when Raiden knew the amount of breaths he had left and began to slowly count down to the last did the other three move in as well. They tucked the destructive disk away just before his spirit relented. Raiden hung there, wheezing, seeing nothing but faded shapes. Even in his blindness, he felt one approach him.

The Elder God bent forward, reaching out and placing their hands against Raiden’s face. With a tug they pull him to feet he couldn’t stand on and then made him look at them. When his flickering gaze finally connected with theirs Raiden felt them begin to merge themselves into him. Again he cried out.

All that Raiden was had been forced from him, now all he will be was pushing into him. This power washing over him drowned him. It moved into the places that had been left lacerated. None of it stopped the bleeding, instead the raw energies agitated the wounds and brought new pains.

Raiden shook, gasping for a breath but he couldn’t find one in the energies that drowned him. He tried to pull his face away from the grasp, but the Elder God would not let go and would not cease the outpouring. It was his power that nearly killed Raiden all over again.

When the grasp loosened, when the Elder God stumbled back and his brethren caught him, Raiden felt the familiar subtle hold of death’s chilling clutch. His vision cleared and then dilated, turning the world into shapes of circling auras. Hands touched him face, tilting his head. Another Elder God came for him.

Somehow Raiden survived each merge. It was likely that the last enhancement given helped move him to tolerate the next, but what was done was done. The Elder Gods gave all they were to him, and he was reborn.

The four stood back, swaying in the helplessness of their physical forms. Their divinity faded. They looked almost mortal. Well, right then, they were.

Every bout of greed, or lust, or rage and pride that had never been his own was taken away from Raiden, sealed inside the medallion—soon to be reunited with its original holder. What was left in its wake was emptiness, hanging parts, and bleeding wounds. So the Elder Gods poured themselves in to fill all of the gaps. They gave everything to Raiden that remained of them save for their emotions, instead they searched and found his own, ones that had been ignored and mistreated under the confusion of Shinnok’s guidance. The Elder Gods nurtured all they found and as soon as these feelings of Raiden’s ran through all that’s happened since his undoing and remaking they grew until he was overtaken by them.

Raiden’s eyes shined gold and then he cried.

“It can only be you now.” The Elder God clutching the amulet close stumbled over toward Raiden. The shackles remained but no longer hindered the thunder god’s movements. They couldn’t.

Raiden’s trembling gaze watched as the amulet was put in his hands. As soon as it touched him he understood what he needed to do with it. Fingers clutched it close and he looked back at the four falling to their knees. They were a pitiful sight, one Raiden couldn’t shed his tears for yet, not when he was still mourning all that had happened.

“Raiden,” they said. “Go and set the realms free.”

There was something that drew Raiden toward the shackles around his ankles and wrists. They didn’t hurt him, instead they felt as if they were the touch of a cherished one. So he laid a hand over one, finding comfort in them as well as a form of sadness, all of which spurred him to leave the weakened Elder Gods in a wave of expulsed surges.

Flying up into the sky, Raiden’s very presence shined gold like the scaled armor wrapped around him. He had the might of the dragons and its hide would protect him in the battle to come, the one he called for as he broke apart the black clouds overhead and brought in the sunlight. Its shine and warmth greeted Raiden eagerly and he basked in it for as long as he could. The furious roars below turned his attention to the oni population plaguing the realm. They were the next excursion he would deal with.

Stretching his arms, Raiden slung white bolts into his grasp. They stretched until they wound around the entirety of the realm and as he laid them against the marred ground he charged every grounded oni he could. They dissolved immediately and those that were strong enough to survive his burning assault quickly hurdled themselves into the doorways off realm and those daring enough to face him were eradicated.

All this destruction pulled the remaining Elder God’s attention.

Cetrion rose from the dark palace with wide fiery eyes. The forests rose up, toppling over root and branch until out rose the corrupted goddess. She rose against Raiden who floated just a ways from her.

“What have you done, Raiden?” She looked furious, but her body twitched with confusion, especially as she watched the populace of the realm disintegrate.

“What should have been done a long time ago.” Raiden’s voice rung throughout the skies, as deep as thunder, and as snapping as the charges flashing through the clouds.

Cetrion glared at him with narrowed eyes and studied him and his essence. She leaned away, her eyes widening in surprise. “The Elder Gods.” Suddenly she was crackling with her fires. “How dare they interfere!? They have no right!”

Raiden shifted, the bolts coiling around his frame intended to show every threat he could toward her. “Just as you had no right to reformat me. But it is your kind’s way, so I will take what they’ve given me and correct all of the wrongs done to my realm, my brothers, and this universe! AAH!” Raiden charged, he collided with her, his sparking fists slammed into her abdomen. They fell.

Cetrion gasped, spitting up bile and magma. She broke through thick forage and trunk as she descended. Her cries weren’t so much cries of agony than they were cries of rage. She recovered quickly, charging Raiden as he had charged her.

She moved earth, arched molten rocks and rushed them toward the thunder god like meteors. Raiden only encased himself with an electric shield that disintegrated anything that came close. The boulders fell like pebbling dust around him and he brushed the obstruction away so that he could keep his vision clear on the enemy before him.

Hissing, Cetrion then attempted a closer combat, however Raiden wouldn’t let her get anywhere near him and when she realized this she began to quake the terrain around them. She forged new shapes around of the grounds, forsaking animal and plant life alike. Then she tossed mountains at Raiden.

In the light of the sun, Raiden swirled clouds around him, charging them until they were as black as night. They hid him in Cetrion’s approach. Her aims fell against the wisps of the storms and the large purchase of ground only rattled the very plates of Earthrealm as they landed mindlessly.

The clouds grew until they regrettably blocked out the sun. All was necessary because they concealed Raiden’s movement, enabling him to draw close to Cetrion until he took hold of her and electrified her, trying as hard as he could to just melt her skin away. Parts did char.

Cetrion gasped at the strike. Her body shook, but her hands gripped against Raiden’s constricting arm. She burned, trying to pry him off of her, but her heat didn’t wound the scaled gauntlets, so Raiden persisted. When her body went slack he released her and watched her plummet to the ground.

The distant sound of Cetrion’s body smacking into the dirt enticed Raiden’s descent. He found her lain against broken stone and tree, one of her arms bent and twisted, while cuts marred the rest of her exposed skin. She was still moving, but it wasn’t enough to startle any reason for alarm. Raiden stood above her, watching as she groaned, as she coughed her pains out. He even persisted his stance as she reached out and grabbed his foot. When she looked up at him their eyes met.

“It’s not supposed to be like this,” she hitched out. Her face twisted in agony as her fingers curled around Raiden’s ankle. There wasn’t even any strength in her grasp. “Your place is by my side.”

Raiden moved his foot away from her clutch. He felt no remorse when he slammed the sole of his boot into the goddess’s head, forcing her further into the dirt. “My place is here, and yours is _not_.”

“What is all this?” Raiden turned, his body sparking with heightening threat as he watched the Elder God approach with a face full of dismay. “I expected to return and find you two entangled in the sheets, not entangled in aggressive combat.”

“Brother!” Cetrion found some surge of strength to move her wounded body away from Raiden and toward Shinnok. As soon as she came to him she clung to his robes, shaking against him and taking the energies he offered for her to heal from her current injuries.

Raiden watched how Shinnok’s eyes narrowed as he roamed them down his form, examining him, taking him in. “It was them, wasn’t it?” His frown deepened. “Damn them, now I’m going to have to undo what they did.”

“They undid what you did to me!” Raiden’s currents flared, his eyes glowing bright, his fists clenched with orbs of voltage. “Now they’ve given me the power to destroy you!”

Shinnok laughed. “Destroy me? Raiden, I cannot die.”

“No, but you can suffer!” Raiden hurled his charges toward Shinnok and Cetrion. He didn’t wait for the dust to settle before he sent another beam. The force of the attack moved earth and annihilated miles of the trees that stood in the way, but it was during the charge of his third attack that he felt the opposing force come around him.

Raiden barely had time to turn and raise his arms against Shinnok’s attack. He came at him quickly, his knee breaking through his electrical shields. Raiden took the strike along his gauntlets, they protected him from the dark powers Shinnok exuded and right then he was emitting a dangerous red.

Shinnok’s eyes glowed, he sneered but lunged forward again. In his palms smeared dark matter, and he aimed it all toward Raiden. Raiden’s speed matched Shinnok’s as did his power, even as the Elder God drew energy from two realms. The abilities of all four Elder Gods swirled within the thunder god and he channeled each of them.

This energy collected along his core before pulsing out with the rush of his heartbeat. It sliced into mountains, flattened forests, and pushed against Shinnok’s pursuit. The upset scrawled across Shinnok’s face morphed into rage when Raiden managed to send a searing fist against his cheek. The Elder God had only managed to avoid most of the damage but his blackened skin sizzled and burned and it made him tremble.

Bending down, Shinnok thrust his palms into the dirt. He morphed the landscape into hands, all reaching up to take hold of the thunder god. Raiden flew into the clouds, sending bolts at every approaching appendage. There had been so many that he had to break through their grasps to return back to Shinnok’s fight and when he did the Elder God was ready for him.

Their energies clashed, pushing against the other so hard the very ground beneath them tore asunder, dissipating like the fabric of that reality. Neither were focused on what they were doing to the environment, just each other. They were so close that their elbows jabbed, their fists flung, their knees rammed, and their feet kicked.

Raiden once again managed to land his charged knuckles against Shinnok, hitting him in the ribs. He was delighted with the sound of notable cracking. But in his strike Shinnok managed to take hold of his wrist and twist it. That was when he noticed the shackles.

Shinnok blinked, reading the word etched into the cuff. He didn’t falter in being attentive to Raiden’s other strikes but he did manage to catch sight of the other pieces as well. That was when he looked at Raiden with deepening eyes. His mind raced.

“Here.” Shinnok caught the other fist flown his way. “Allow me to release you.” His fingers dug into the cuff that bore the name of “earth” and with his might he shattered it.

“Jiten!” Raiden shook out of Shinnok’s embrace, his fingers running over his left gauntlet now bare of the shackle he had been reborn with. His heart hammered as it wept. But this sudden spike in emotion laid Raiden open to Shinnok’s other strike, the one that tore the shackle from his right ankle. “Suiten!”

Left open to a painful strike, Shinnok didn’t waste the opportunity to land a powerful blow against Raiden, sending him flying down into the wasteland they created. He came to him soon after, pushing him into the dirt to keep his struggling at a minimum.

“You think they gave you strength?” Shinnok pulled at Raiden’s head and slammed him into the rocks below over and over again until he dazed the god. Then he reached down and dragged him toward him, winding his fingers around his left ankle and tearing the cuff off before smashing it in his palm. “I was the one who transformed you! The one who elevated you to the status of an Elder God. Not the others, and most certainly not your brothers. And if they keep hindering you then I will correct my mistake in letting them live!”

“Katen . . .” Raiden groaned, his heart rolling with hurt. He tried to get back up, to turn and fight Shinnok but the god continued to push him down with his might.

When Shinnok reached down and grabbed Raiden’s right wrist he twisted him back. Raiden grunted, but at least now he was facing Shinnok. His eyes wide as the god’s fingers dug into the shackle named “wind.” Fujin.

“Let them go!” Shinnok growled, tugging. “You’re place is beside me!”

“NO!”

A sudden rush of all of Earthrealm’s winds collected, swirling around them, between them. Shinnok was pushed back but he quickly steadied his stance, glaring into the form shifting in the torrent. Raiden’s last remaining shackle split apart, falling away into pieces before reforming into the winds. Now white eyes looked at Shinnok with an equally glaring face.

“We lost him once, you will not take Raiden from us again.” Fujin moved the winds to shield his brother, his own form standing before him.

Shinnok snickered, jutting his chin. “You going to stop me?”

“No, I will!” There came Raiden, surging forward. The moment he slammed himself into Shinnok he shot out his power, ripping the damaged area around them more. When they hit ground, Raiden made sure he wound up on top, pummeling Shinnok as hard as he could. He didn’t stop until he heard his very bones give underneath his knuckles.

As Shinnok retaliated and kicked Raiden off and away, Raiden’s landing came softly on his brother’s winds. He looked at Fujin who encouraged him further. He used the gales to moved Raiden faster, aiding his strikes with all he had.

When it actually moved the fallen Elder God into a retreating stance Fujin and Raiden could hardly believe it. Shinnok stood hunched, lips bleeding and skin burnt. His leg was mangled and he could barely stand upright, however his condition did stop his seething glare toward the brothers.

“Shinnok!” All turned to see Cetrion come closer. She lunged toward her brother with arms outstretched.

Fujin’s eyes widened. “No! Don’t!”

As their bodies pressed together their essences merged and their forms melted away, morphing into a single entity that towered over the plane, bright eyes opening, looking into the sparking clouds ahead. The might they exuded surged out, knocking even Raiden back a few paces. But Fujin was there, clinging to him, helping him stand as much as he could keep his own footing.

The entity didn’t relish in its merging for long. It looked at the gods and moved down against them. Raiden rose his hands, shielding him and his brother. His power provided them protection for five strikes. When the sixth came down it slammed into Raiden’s electric field and nearly crushed the both of them hadn’t they lunged away.

“Raiden!” The thunder god turned to his brother who hovered just to his right. “They’ll break apart the realms and awaken the One Being if they persist! You have to separate them before—!”

Raiden gasped, watching as Fujin fell away from a shockwave. One such wave moved toward Raiden, but he resisted it with his might and even dared moving closer toward the gods—the god. He could feel the magnitude of its essence, it covered the realm and seeped over into those nearby. Fujin was right, if Shinnok and Cetrion remained merged they would never separate and the destruction of the realms would begin.

Straining forward, Raiden moved clouds around the being, circling it with charges and darkness. It wiggled but remained in the dark even as Raiden hurled every voltage he could at it. But to his horror his powers had little effect on it. All his attacks did was draw it closer to him and as it reached for him, Raiden tried to stand just out of its grasp.

Periodically it would push out waves of power that had nowhere else to go but outward. Shinnok and Cetrion’s energies struggled to mingle, to fall into a functioning current, and as they did this their combined form shivered, shattering anything near. The shockwaves began to quicken and Raiden found himself unable to prolong his struggle against it.

With a grunt, Raiden fell against the shattered face of a cliff. He slid down to the rocky sands below. The waving waters swashed over his grieves. He came to stand, his energies moving the climbing waters away, but the moment he swayed to his feet the entity fell on him and took hold of him, crushing him.

Raiden’s cry rang throughout the realm as he struggled against the constricting hold. Cosmic fingers ensnared him, and eyes like the sun looked at him with intense familiarity. Legs kicked and arms strained to pull at the grip holding him, even the charges Raiden pulled from the recess of his aura did nothing.

Instead he felt tremors rattle his body. The entity shocked him with its energies, intending to overload him. Raiden resisted, teeth grit and eyes sparking gold as his armor too withstood the might of the entity’s attack. But then it shifted, doing something else Raiden hadn’t expected, the entity ate him.

Raiden fell into its very core and felt it around him, brushing him, gripping his arms and his legs, stretching him, caressing him. He struggled against it, but it was everywhere and clawed at him with disembodied hands. What charges he sent out were simply eaten, digested, as he felt himself being.

It made Raiden ill. He could feel it tearing at the fabric of his make, sucking all that he was away and further into itself. The process was horrifically slow and alarming. But before Raiden disappeared more he felt himself fall.

The crush of his body hitting the solid ground below helped pull Raiden’s fractured mind back together. The being had spewed him out, now hovering over him as if it couldn’t decide what to do with him. For a moment Raiden was frozen under its intense gaze, horrified over what he had felt and experienced, but as soon as large hands gripped him, tearing at the golden armor encasing him, Raiden’s energy returned. He shot his might at the defiling beast and for a moment the effects of his electric pulse made it falter backwards. It gave Raiden enough time to pull out the amulet and open its vortex.

The entity jerked back immediately. It let out a cry that shook the universe, it even disoriented Raiden’s senses but he stood as firmly as he could, watching as the being seized, wiggling and screaming. It was ripped apart, devoured by the power of the medallion, a feeling Raiden knew well, but held away any pity for it as its cries then became those of two.

Cetrion fell to the ground, her hands gripping into the stones beneath as she screamed. Her eyes were wide, shaking as she watched Shinnok fall away from her. He cried out in agony. His face contorted from the pains of his very matter shattering only to move away from him into the belly of the device.

Shinnok struggled. He tried his hardest to resist the amulet. He reached for Cetrion who tried to reach him as well, but she was too gripped in the pains of her own portions being taken from her that she couldn’t hold onto Shinnok and save him from his fate.

He was close. Raiden watched how close Shinnok was to just disappearing. His arms struggled to keep the medallion up as it vibrated from the atrocity of it, but he did all he could to see this to the end. He had to.

Slipping back, just a scream away from disappearing completely into the amulet, Shinnok stood his ground, even as he dissolved. His chest against the disk, his eyes glared at the god holding it. The intensity of his stare would have startled anyone, but Raiden glared back, standing firm even as Shinnok reached up and wound his hands around his neck. He didn’t even get the chance to strangle him before his fingers dissipated along with his wrists and his arms and then his entirety.

After it was all over. After all was still and silent and at peace, Raiden fell to his knees, the amulet rolling out his grasp as his consciousness faded from him. That was how Fujin found him.

Crawling closer, Fujin wound his arms around his brother and held him close. Looking over he saw only Cetrion remained, her body limp but still showing signs of life. The amulet had only taken one—the one Fujin wanted gone.

In the quiet, Fujin found it safe to let the remainder of his tears fall. They dropped like patters of rain along Raiden’s face and down his golden armor. His body shook while he rocked himself against his brother—the only one he had left and from there he laid his head against Raiden’s, basking in his presence, in the feel of him in his arms. He wouldn’t let go of him this time.

How long they’d been like that was unknown, but Fujin’s eyes immediately turned when the Elder Gods came. As they approached he tightened his hold on Raiden, knowing just how their kind had treated him and his brother. They stilled, wary of the look in his eyes. Good.

“Turn him back,” Fujin said, his voice barely audible, but he didn’t question if the four had heard him. “Give him Earthrealm, make him protector again. Please.”

One came closer than the others. Still remaining at a distance he reached forward, pulling his essence out of Raiden. It bubbled up out of his mouth, slithering high until it careened and moved back to its original holder. Fujin saw how the god revived, his aura strengthening back to the height it once was, even the vibrancy of his skin returned and his posture straightened until his divinity was apparent again. It was a mesmerizing sight.

With a sigh, he looked down at his hands and then at Fujin. “What’s done has been done.” He turned to see his brethren taking their turns to retrieve their powers as well. “Raiden cannot return as Earthrealm’s protector. He is an Elder God.”

Fujin felt his muscles tense. Even after the last god recovered their essence, he could feel Raiden. His aura hadn’t changed much in his remaking. His essence still sung with the magnitude of something sovereign and cosmic. He was still levels above where he once stood, even where Fujin stood.

“Then . . .” Fujin looked at the others.

A goddess inclined her head to him, looking at Raiden. “He belongs in Heaven, seated amongst us.”

It was an honor to live above the realms, to sit beside the most supreme of beings, at least that’s what Fujin had been taught as did the other immortals. But now he knew the falsies in that belief. What honor was it in losing his only brother?

It was _that_ bastard’s fault. Moved by fucking lusts and greed _he_ stole Raiden from Fujin and the realm itself and forced him to transform into a being who can no longer act as protector, who now had no right to remain in Earthrealm.

No.

NO!

Fujin’s grip didn’t loosen, even as much more powerful beings stood before him ready to enact their wills. “How? How are all of you so incapable?” Teeth grinding, Fujin held Raiden close to his chest as he glared back at the four great gods. “You were the ones to create these laws, now you’re no longer the creators but slaves!”

“Should we forsake them then we risk distorting the very balance of the cosmic scale,” one said, standing tall and square-shouldered. “The laws are absolute, untainted; therefore we must keep them.” His eyes looked down at Raiden. “As will he.”

“Feel for yourself, Fujin.” The goddess nearest pulled her gaze around the realm. It was completely decimated. Then she looked down toward the amulet laying in the dirt beside Raiden. “Earthrealm remains, albeit in a pitiful state, strung on fragile strings its energies move around in search, attempting to reach out to its master who has been irrevocably locked away. Even if we allowed it, Raiden cannot hold that title by right.”

“Then damn the titles! All I’m asking is that you let him stay. Please.” Fujin’s face contorted over his rising griefs. “I’ve lost too many, if you take him then I’ll . . .” Fujin couldn’t imagine a world without Raiden, at least not his world. As god of the winds he belonged in Earthrealm, but he refused to stand in the planes by himself. He just couldn’t. “Please, at least . . . at least for a little longer.”

Their silence always disturbed him. It kept Fujin waiting for what felt like doom. Perhaps that’s exactly what it was.

A goddess came closer. She knelt down and was cautious of the way Fujin shuddered winds around them and tightened his embrace on his brother. Her smile appeared kind and there was a form of understanding his her eyes but Fujin wondered if she truly understood him and what he was asking, begging.

“He will have to come with us,” she said and it was those words that struck Fujin’s heart, sending ice throughout his veins as fright began its slow constricting hold to choke him, but then she said, “However there is something we can do . . . for now.”

Fujin watched her reach forward. She placed her hand against Raiden’s brow. A light formed underneath her touch, flickering like a pure flame. Its light pulsed, stretching over Raiden’s grime-covered skin. Fujin saw the way his brother reacted to it in his unconsciousness. His face contorted, eyelids fluttering until all twitching movement stilled and Raiden settled, every creased line smoothed and shifted feature lax.

Fujin looked at the goddess with wonder, and she looked at him with soft sincerity.

“All of his heartache, all of his pain, all of his shame he’ll forget. The wrongs done to him will be as if they never happened. It’s for the best.” Her bright eyes looked at the wind and thunder gods with a pity that made Fujin believe was genuine. “We will lay our hands over the universe and do the same—for the sake of all the hearts affected across the realms. Raiden will believe he’s divine protector and he can continue to think so, as long as Shinnok remains in there.” She nods toward the amulet. “I ask that you ensure his prolonged imprisonment for all our sakes.”

Fujin leaned over and took up the golden disk. He looked it over, watching as it shined in the light of the sun. It seemed like a regular piece of treasure, but it was one whose value was utterly shameful to the point Fujin wanted to toss it into the deepest ocean, but he clutched it close knowing he had to. Knowing he had to make sure it remained untouched, unnoticed to greedy and ambitious eyes.

Looking back down at his brother, Fujin noticed how peaceful he looked, as if he was dreaming of pleasant days. Memories gone, but Fujin still felt Raiden’s power. “But will he—?”

The goddess nodded. “Raiden will still retain his power. There’s nothing we can do to take it away. However with these locks in place over his memories they will also act as a restraint against his might. Without his memories he shouldn’t be able to tap into his true abilities.”

The relief that washed over Fujin made his entire body slump, yet his arms continued to hold and carry Raiden. He bowed his head, closing his eyes as the weariness of everything that had happened pulled him to seek rest. But in his search for peace in that moment the touch against his forehead made him flinch back. He glared at the goddess who looked at him with confusion.

“Don’t you too want the relief?” she questioned.

Fujin shook his head. “I want to remember. I need to.” He exhaled, looking down at Raiden. “If I don’t then how will I ensure his power stays bound? And my brothers . . . Raiden won’t . . . ?”

She shook her head. “For the sake of his heart, I’ve removed their faces and names.”

Fujin felt his heart roll inside his chest. It’s not what he would have wanted, nor Raiden, but it’s what needed to be done. With a nod, Fujin accepted all the Elder Gods could do.

Sighing, Fujin dropped his gaze. “I haven’t shown you much respect. Forgive me. I’ve been forced through a lot and my faith was unfortunately the first thing to fade.” He looked up at the gods. “Thank you; for hearing me, even when I wasn’t praying.”

“It is the honor you deserve for aiding us in saving the realms,” they said.

Fujin nodded mindlessly. Honor. What was that anymore? Even granted it, Fujin couldn’t feel it. Only the shame from all he’s done, all he’s allowed. But he would keep it, remember it—for those who couldn’t.

“The honor belongs to my brother.” Fujin smiled down at Raiden. “He’d gone through so much and still fought to the end. I could never hope to be that strong.” Fujin turned his eyes, watching how the gods picked up Cetrion’s unmoving form and prepared themselves for departure.

“You underestimate your strength, Fujin. As for your brother’s honor, it is recognized and will come when he ascends. Until then, we will prepare a place for him and remain in wait.” Each Elder God offered a bow to him. Fujin inclined himself in return.

When they left, when Earthrealm was free of their presence, a strange peace came in the descending darkness. Fujin shifted, laying his brother’s head in his lap as soon as he took off his hat and laid it in the dirt.

He took a breath, and then took another. His heart ached and his eyes stung with moisture, but he was alive and so was Raiden. Earthrealm was in shambles and its populace near nonexistent. There was so much to be done, so much for the protector deity to mend. Raiden would fall into immense stress in his attempts to reshape the realm into a livable plane again, but that was fine because Fujin would be there with him, standing right beside him, willing to share such burdens.

The road to recovery was long, but the one to survival never-ending.

* * *

Argus’ grin continued to curl over the lip of his chalice. Shao only glared at the promiscuous deity for the way his eyes shined.

“I saw you staring,” the Edenian god said, his eyes moving over toward the location of one of their hosts. “Now, Shao, why haven’t you told me about your hidden affections?”

Shao’s frown deepened, and there may have been some discoloration along his tan cheeks hadn’t his great helm been so obscuring. Fingers curled around the cup in hand. Earthrealm’s liquor was some of the best, and the Outworld deity hadn’t touched a drop of it, instead opting to following the direction of the one who humbly poured it.

“I have my reasons,” Shao murmured, moving his glaring eyes away as if to ignore his fellow guest but in the end his wandering gaze once again fell over toward the younger of their hosts.

“Lord Fujin’s a sight. And so is his brother.” Argus sighed, smiling in admiration. “I’d fuck ‘em both if they’d let me.”

Once again Shao turned his heated eyes toward the Edenian. His audacious words aggravated him to no end. No doubt if he said such things in Outworld Shao would have no qualms in beating respect into the deity.

Argus only grinned, downing the remainder of the contents of his cup and then handing it over to a passing servant. Their mammalian build seemed to entice him more than Earthrealm’s previous indigenous reptilian species. After his appreciating eyes pulled away he looked over toward their hosts who were in the midst of friendly banter with the other guests.

“No, you’d have to do something big like unite all six great realms if you even wanted a chance at getting Lord Raiden’s blessing.” Argus shook his head. “And I can’t see him willingly parting with Fujin. Those two are much too close.”

Argus and Shao were among many deities who had watched the two Earthrealm guardians rebuild their tattered realm. Earthrealm, once the jewel of the universe, had been rendered to a chaotic void of nothingness. Its population gone and elements and resources ravaged. It was thousands upon thousands of years until the brothers managed to even align the plane, but once they did the slow process of reconstruction began.

Without any intellectual species, Raiden and Fujin had to bend their bodies into the work and their strength and perseverance proved in those times. Even when new peoples began to evolve, they were the ones to hold patience with their weaknesses and guide them into higher intellect. Humans, all formed after the brothers’ image and so very loved by them both.

In time it was the humans who began to worship the deities who stood beside them, working to shape the realm into the potential paradise it could be. Cities were raised, temples constructed, crops grown and tended, and animals bred and multiplied. It had taken more than a million years, but Earthrealm was shining again, its energies singing with purity and content.

These feats hailed the brothers with constant praise. So of course many deities flocked to the realm the moment Raiden had opened it and offered accommodations for his immortal guests.

“My friends!” All turned toward the booming sound of Raiden’s voice. “I am honored that you have joined me today in celebration of my realm’s recovery. It’s been some time since I could offer any form of accommodation appropriate enough for our kind. That you dine and lounge in luxury verifies Earthrealm’s revival and I would have none other test out its fineries than you. Please, stay as long as you like and relish in all I have.”

At Raiden’s behest, his guests did so. And the honorary hosts remained amongst them for as long as they asked of them. But when the pleasantries slowed, when many of the deities carried on in their indulgences it gave the brothers time to pull away into the confines of their temple where the servants are quiet enough to give them peace.

It’s in that solitude that the two settle themselves into meditation, side by side.

Fujin was only startled out of his state of peace when he felt his brother’s aura shift, twisting uncomfortably until he knew he was drawn out of his concentration. Opening his eyes, he looked over toward Raiden who was leaning forward on his hands, his eyes gleaming with a sheen of moisture that was quickly blinked away to glower in frustration.

“What troubles you?” Fujin inquired softly. He remained positioned, cross-legged, his hands on his knees while he levitated on a soft wind.

“I’m not sure,” Raiden said. He sighed, closing his eyes as he shook his head. As he leaned back, he tried to retake his meditative stance, but it was obvious his body was too tense to do so.

“I’m here if you need me,” Fujin said, watching his brother in his struggle. It was a problem that has recurred.

Raiden sighed, his eyes sparking slightly as he looked around the room. There was something in them besides aggravation, Fujin knew what it was. When Raiden glanced his way, the emotion was clear, but he wondered if his brother even knew he was feeling it.

“I want to feel relieved,” Raiden said, “We’ve worked so hard. I want to bask in all our effort like our guests are, but there’s something that I can’t explain.” Once again his eyes wandered toward the large room they were seated in. Its echoing expanse carried on even into the hallways where the servants respectfully passed in and out of. “I am honored by all the things given, but places like this feels big, too big. It seems empty even when it’s at its fullest.”

Fujin felt his heart tighten. Raiden was feeling loss. His memories might have been sealed, but the emotions attached to them couldn’t be tampered with. So now the thunder god would mourn when he didn’t know _who_ it was he was crying for.

“I’m sorry.” Raiden shook his head again, closing his eyes and trying to fall back into peace. “I didn’t mean to disturb your enlightenment.”

Fujin watched on in silence while Raiden struggled to contain his out of place emotions. It was common of him to do so, this has happened before and he knows it’ll happen again. Eventually, Fujin knew Raiden would remember. He didn’t know how or when that would happen, but he knew it would come. So he tried his hardest to prepare himself for when that day came.

Closing his eyes, Fujin settled his own rising anxieties and worries until he became the support Raiden needed of him. In return, he leaned against his brother. “No . . . I feel the same.”

He could sense Raiden looking at him, but Fujin kept his eyes closed, kept his mind at peace for as long as he could because the day was not yet here where they would both have to face their traumatic pasts and the uncertain futures it paved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THE END
> 
> My god! I had so much fun writing this! Did it get out of hand? Yes. But, man, what a ride. Hope you all enjoyed all the craziness of this twisted story as much as my dark soul did!  
> Maybe I'll have to slip by and drop another fic in the near/distant future if anyone's interested. Until then, ciao!


End file.
